The Two Sides of the Wind (REWRITE)
by CloudSkylark18
Summary: Yuzuki Hisoka and her family have just moved to Namimori. Arashi, Yuzuki's twin brother, is forced to remain at home due to a mysterious illness he contracted. When Yuzuki's family travels to Italy to find a cure and take a vacation, Yuzuki remains behind and makes some friends. But hiding her brother's existence might be harder than she thinks. Full Summary inside. Also on Quotev.
1. Intro

Summary- Yuzuki Hisoka and her family have just moved to Namimori. Arashi, Yuzuki's twin brother, is forced to remain at home due to a mysterious illness he contracted. When Yuzuki's family travels to Italy to find a cure and take a vacation, Yuzuki remains behind and makes some friends. But hiding her brother's existence might be harder than she thinks, especially when she has to deal with Reborn and a certain skylark. Eventual Hibari x OC and Chrome x OC

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Intro

Trees and buildings flashed by as the van my family and I were in drove on. My twin sat next to me in the middle, while my younger brother slept soundly in the back. My mother and father were talking in the front speaking of my older sister Chisaki, who would be meeting us at our new home. Yep, my family and I had packed up and moved from Tokyo to the quaint town of Namimori. The reasons were numerous, but there were two that were chief among them. The first was that I needed a better education. Living in Tokyo had perks of better schools, but my grades weren't the best and few teachers had time for one-on-one with their students.

Tutors were recommended but my family couldn't afford to hire one. The other reason for our move was my twin. Arashi had gotten sick about the middle of the school year, and hadn't gotten better. He wasn't frail by any means, but he'd still become ill and it didn't seem like he'd be cured for a good while yet. I think that was a big reason why my grades were so bad; I worried about him even if he was a minute older than me. Of course I didn't blame him for a thing but that didn't make him feel better about being a cause of our move.

Finally we pulled into a driveway to find a brilliant green sports car already there. My sister Chisaki stood next to it waving to us. As the van slowed to a stop Haruto yawned from his place in the back. His eyes were bleary with sleep but his voice sounded awake.

"Onee-chan, onii-chan are we there yet?" he asked. Arashi and I were beaten to the reply by our father.

"Sure are Haruto," he said grinning with excitement dancing in his gray eyes, "Are you excited?"

"Yeah," Haruto said now fully awake as he unbuckled, and exited the car. I smiled at him along with Arashi, who looked pale, but otherwise seemed fine for the time being. As soon as Haruto's feet hit the pavement Arashi and I unbuckled and followed our younger brother's lead. We were greeted by our mother as we did. Her brown hair danced in the breeze that had the leaves rustling in harmony with the grass.

"So what do you two think of our new home?"" she asked. It sounded strange to call this place home, but after a while it would feel normal.

"It's nice I guess," I said, "But…"

"It doesn't feel like home just yet," Arashi finished for me. I smiled at my twin. Sometimes, people would forget that we were fraternal twins. We looked extremely similar with matching heights, eye and hair color. Even our voices sounded similar enough to convince people that we were one person or identical. Of course it was also probably because I kept my hair short so it wouldn't be grabbed by bullies or jerks. Both of which had happened before. Chisaki walked up to us as our mom left to help dad with a few things.

"So, how's was the ride?" she asked gray eyes questioning.

"Fine, but what about yours?" I asked.

"Yeah, it was a pretty long drive after all," Arashi said pointedly. It was no secret, to anyone that knew Chisaki, that our sister hated long drives. To my question Chisaki shrugged.

"Eh, could have been better or worse, but I managed," she said, "I've already scouted the house too, and called the best room the place has to offer."

"Hey, you always get the best room," Arashi and I chorused, "That's not fair aniki."

"Tough because it's already done," she said teasingly. Arashi suddenly let out a cough which had me and Chisaki looking at him with worry. He brushed it off, but he looked paler than he had earlier and I could hear the rasp in his breath. I felt completely useless; Arashi was my twin and all I could do was watch him suffer, and feel his pain and fear.

"Chisaki could you come help your mother with Haruto?" our father asked. My older sister nodded and headed inside to help out.

"Yuzuki, Arashi your mother and I have been talking and we've decided that until Arashi is better he won't be able to go to school," our father said walking to stand in front of us.

"But what about Yuzuki," Arashi asked, "I don't want her to go alone."

"It's okay Arashi, I'll be fine," I said trying to be as reassuring as possible. Yeah I was probably lying since a friend of mine had told me of the rumors he'd heard about Namimori. If I were honest; I was frightened of going to school and coming home on my own, but if I told that to Arashi he'd try to come with me.

"Are you sure nee-san?" Arashi asked. I nodded and smiled.

"Completely," I wondered if he could see through my lie. But he didn't press the matter any further, which had me mentally sighing in relief. I heard my father sigh.

"And there's one more thing Yuzuki," he said gray eyes serious, "We've heard a rumor of a doctor over in Italy who apparently specializes in diseases, even ones that other doctors don't know about. We plan to go and check it out, but only after we find out if the rumors are warranted. And if they are… you'll have to stay here."

"What?" I asked, "Alone?"

My father nodded. My heart seemed to stop. Normally such things wouldn't bother me, but now things were different. This place was new, and if rumors were to be believed dangerous as well. Arashi also seemed to share my sentiments.

"But Tou-san, why would she have to stay here?" Arashi asked. Our father sighed running a hand through his hair.

"Money," he answered, "We only have enough to get four of us to Italy and back. Chisaki will be at college most days so having her come wouldn't work, and Haruto's too young to be left alone. That's why if we do go it will be your mother, Haruto, me, and you Arashi."

"It's still not fair to leave Yuzuki here," my brother complained, blue-gray eyes flashing angrily.

"I don't want to do it either Arashi, but it's the only solution," our father said gently, "Besides we don't even know if we are going, so Yuzuki might not be here alone. And if we do go, searching for the truth of the rumors will likely take some time, so your sister will be able to get acquainted with her classmates at Namimori Middle and make some friends."

"Yeah, but…" I cut my brother off.

"Arashi, I'll be fine," I said, "I don't like the idea of staying here by myself either, but it's the only way. And Dad's right you all might not even go."

"Okay," Arashi sighed, "but promise me you won't do anything reckless… please."

"I can't make any guarantees but I'll try my best," I said, "Now let's go see if Chisaki really did steal the best room again."

With that we ran inside. I just wish now that I'd known how things would turn out because at least then I'd have been more prepared.

 **Me: Well, folks this is a rewrite of my Two Sides of the Wind. *looks back at old version and cringes* I realized after looking at that it was fairly cringe-worthy so I decided to redo it completely.**

 **Yuzuki: Yeah that romance was going way too fast in my opinion.**

 **Me: *nods* You weren't the only one who thought so. In my defense though I wasn't really into romance at that time; I still don't really care for it but I'm probably better than I was. Anyways the romance in this will go slower, though that silver tiger necklace will still have a part to play in this… even though I never published that much of my story before.**

 **Yuzuki: So please review and let Brightcloud know what you think, she also does not own KHR but she owns me, my family, and other OCs.**

 **Me: Yep, and I also own the plot where my OCs are concerned. *bows* With that I bid you farewell until next time.**

 **Yuzuki: Ja ne minna.**


	2. First Day at Namimori Middle

First Day at Namimori Middle

I looked at the closed door, waiting to be called in. I took a deep breath to steady myself. The moment I'd arrived at school I was ushered to my classroom and given my schedule. The sign next to the door read 1-A. I'd heard some pretty strange rumors about some people in this class. One of which told of a boy who'd confessed to his crush in nothing but boxers. To say the least I was nervous about being in such a class, but as I was a late arrival this was the only one available to me. I swallowed as the door was opened.

"You can come in now," the teacher said stepping to the side. I inclined my head to him and entered the classroom. My heart was pounding against my chest as I took in the looks of everyone in the room. I wasn't normally shy, but then again my brother wasn't with me. I also had to remember that I couldn't tell anyone about Arashi until he was able to come to school. Taking another deep breath I smiled at my classmates.

"Konnichiwa minna," I began, "my name is Hisoka Yuzuki I hope we can get along."

"Thank you Hisoka-san you can take the seat next to Yamada-san," the teacher said, "Yamada-san please raise your hand."

A girl near the back of the classroom lifted her hand. She smiled, and I returned it with a smaller one. Then I headed to the back of the room and took a seat next to her. After that the teacher dove straight into the lesson. My mind wandered as the man continued to talk. I'd heard this problem before, and wasn't all that keen on listening. Instead I thought of my brother; wondering how he was fairing at home. I let out a small sigh glancing at the board with unfocused eyes. However I was snapped out of my daze when I felt someone's gaze on me. Being as inconspicuous as I could I glanced around for the source, but was unable to locate it. A chill ran up my spine, and I had to wonder who was watching me and why.

~Later~

I smiled tiredly as I looked down at the worksheet I'd been given earlier. It was completed and I'd double checked the answers to make sure they were right. Satisfied that they were I stood and grabbed my lunch. I realized that whoever had been watching me had stopped at some point, but when was something I didn't know. I decided to shrug it off for the time being before I left the room, bento in hand. I made it about halfway to the cafeteria when I felt a hand placed on my shoulder. I stiffened at the contact, and glanced to the side.

"Oh, Yamada-san do you need something?" I asked. The girl smiled with closed eyes.

"Well, I was just wondering if you'd like to have lunch with me," she said, "Well, me and my friends that is."

"Ah, Hiromi-chan there you are," a familiar voice called from behind the dark haired girl. The one talking was another girl from my class. Her unusual orange hair and green eyes marked her as the school's idol, Sasagawa Kyoko.

"Nee, Kyoko-chan do you think Hisoka-chan could eat lunch with us?" Hiromi asked. Kyoko smiled and nodded.

"Of course, I'll go let Hana know," the idol of Namimori Middle said before heading off to find her other friend. As Hiromi and I continued on to the cafeteria my new… well, I suppose she was a friend babbled on and on about some boy she had a crush on. I nodded and threw in an occasional comment, though if I were totally honest I wasn't all that interested in her conversation. Thankfully we reached the cafeteria quickly and found our seats with Kyoko and Hana; the latter also being in my class.

"So Hisoka-san do you have any siblings?" Kyoko asked after a while. I stiffened slightly, but nodded all the same.

"Yeah, I have an older sister in college, and a younger brother," I replied. I felt bad lying… or rather leaving out the whole truth to these girls who I already considered friends.

"So what are they like?" Hiromi asked curiosity dancing in her brown eyes.

"Well, Chisaki is very mature, and pretty. But she's also very smart and kind even if she doesn't seem to be," I said smiling, "And Haruto… well, he's a bit of a pistol I guess you could say. He's always getting into something though he's fairly good at making friends."

"So, why do you keep your hair short?" Hana asked. I mentally smiled as this was a question I was asked quite often.

"I do it because at my old school me and my," I paused for a minute, "friend were bullied. It wasn't like we were the only victims, but I learned to keep my hair fairly short in order to avoid it being grabbed. Besides I've gotten used to it being short and I don't think I could imagine it being longer."

After that we just talked about other things. Kyoko commented on her brother's recklessness, and Hana said that he shouldn't be worrying his little sister like that. Hiromi started up about her crush again, and I learned that she had a new crush about every week but was actually serious about this one. I mostly kept quiet only throwing in my comment when I thought it was necessary. By the end of lunch I was laughing along with my three new friends as Hiromi told a story about how her brother and his friends ended up getting brought in on a misunderstanding. From what I gathered her brother was only a few years older than my sister, and had gone into a restaurant where his girlfriend worked in order to propose to her. Unfortunately the manager didn't understand and had called the cops.

Luckily though everything had been situated, and Hiromi's brother was happily married and expecting his first child. Still the story would provide a good laugh for everyone, and would be a good story to tell the kids.

"I'll have to tell your brother that he provided me with a good laugh should I ever meet him Yamada-san," I snickered. Hiromi grinned.

"Well, maybe you will someday," my dark haired friend said, "He cringes every time someone mentions that day, but he still tells the story himself."

Suddenly I was aware of being watched again, but as I didn't want to worry my new friends I said nothing. Unfortunately the feeling didn't go away until school was released. Kyoko and I walked to the entrance together as Hana was called away by the teacher for a little chat and Hiromi headed for tennis practice. The two of us talked for a little while before parting to head our separate ways. I was almost out the door when I bumped into someone. I muttered a quick apology, and was given a reply along the lines of 'it's fine'. Then I continued on my way home.

"I'm back," I called out as I entered my house and kicked off my shoes. I let out an 'oomph' as Haruto barreled into me; knocking the air out of my lungs. I hugged my younger brother and smiled.

"So how was school?" my mother asked walking into the entry way. I shrugged since it wasn't all that different from Tokyo if just at a slightly slower pace.

"It was okay I suppose," I replied, "I mean it wasn't all that different from back home."

"Hey, Yuzuki did you make any friends?" Haruto asked. I nodded.

"Yeah, I did," I answered, "I think you'd like them Mom, they're really nice."

My mother hummed in thought, but said nothing. Of course even if she did say anything I likely wouldn't have heard her as Haruto was dragging me away to verse him in one of his many video games.

* * *

 **Me: Okay so there's Chapter One. *thoughtful* Hmm, the ending seems a bit rushed but whatever. So who could Yuzuki have bumped into?**

 **Yuzuki: All will be revealed soon… not next chapter soon, but soon or maybe not. So, until then feel free to take a stab at guessing who I bumped into.**

 **Me: And just so you know it might just have been some random OC of mine, or a minor character from the show. But like Yuzuki said it will be revealed eventually.**

 **Yuzuki: *clears throat* Well, with that said I'd like to remind everyone that Brightcloud0915 only owns her OCs of which I am among and nothing of KHR.**

 **Me: Well, nothing but my OCs and the plot when it involves my characters. Ahem, anyways I hope to see you all again for the next chapter and until then sayonara.**

 **Yuzuki: Until next time *waves*.**


	3. Paranoia

Paranoia

I shifted in my seat trying to get comfortable, but it seemed I was destined to fail. Not only was this teacher's voice slowly putting me into a coma, but for some reason I just could not seem to sit still or even relax for that matter (even though my brain just really wanted to shut off). I had a feeling it was something to do with Arashi, but what was the question swirling around in my mind. Of course perhaps it was the feeling of being watched again that was making me restless. Whatever the case I knew I wouldn't be able to focus on the lesson, or whatever it was the teacher was going on and on about.

~Lunch Time~

I sighed in relief as the bell rang for lunch. Quite honestly I felt that if I were to sit in that classroom any longer I'd have turned into a permanent addition to the school. A statue that future students would look upon with fear worried that they'd end up like me. I snickered at the thought as I made my way to the table my friends sat at.

"What's put you in such a good mood Yuzuki-chan?" Hiromi asked. Yeah, we were already past calling each other by our last names, even though we only met the day before.

"Oh nothing in particular," I replied, "So how was practice yesterday?"

"Eh, same old same old," Hiromi answered, "The only really interesting thing that happened was Yamamoto-san hitting the ball into our courts."

I whistled in admiration. The star of the baseball team Yamamoto Takeshi had to be good in order to hit the ball nearly to the other side of the school. From what I'd seen of him in class… well, let's just say I hadn't thought he'd be able to do something like that. The first thing that came to mind was that he was just too easy-going to really commit to anything. After all the guy's grades weren't all that good, but now hearing what Hiromi said about his skill on the field I got the feeling that maybe his focus was locked baseball over schoolwork.

"That reminds me Yuzuki-chan," Hiromi's voice pulled me from my observation, "I was wondering if you play any sports."

"Well, I like soccer and I guess I was pretty good at it. Nowadays though I'm more into things like martial arts," I said.

"So do you go to a dojo to train?" Kyoko asked. I shook my head.

"No I don't. My dad's actually the one who teaches me everything, and he learned everything from his father," I replied, "I guess this is his way of passing on a legacy that started with his great-grandfather."

"Wow," Hiromi breathed, "That's so cool Yuzuki-chan."

"Maybe you could show us something some time," Hana said.

"Well, I suppose I could," I said slowly, "But I'm not that good; though I blame most of that on the fact that I started later than my father did. If you really want to see some cool moves you should have my dad show you what he can do."

"Then maybe we could all come over some time," Kyoko said smiling. I nodded, though inside I wasn't so sure.

"Yeah maybe," I murmured, "one day."

~Later~

I grumbled irritably as I looked at the list in my hand. I'd come home to find that my mother and father were both gone with Haruto in tow, and Arashi asleep. I'd left my twin alone and gone back downstairs to fix myself a snack when I'd found the list and a note. In the note my parents had asked me to head to the shopping district and pick up what was on the list. They'd also said that they'd left some money in the drawer for me to use. Hence the reason I was grumbling. Thankfully the list wasn't very long, and the shopping district wasn't very far from my place. In fact the first store I came to sold half of the stuff I needed, but the rest required me to hop from one to the other.

I was nearly done when I passed by a jewelry store. Now normally I would have kept right on going, but something in the window made me pause. It was a necklace with a silver tiger pendant. Faux onyx jewels created the tiger's stripes while two fake sapphires twinkled from their places as eyes. The craftsmanship was well-done; I could tell that whoever had made this piece had taken the time to study the way a tiger looked when it was stalking its prey. I checked the price, and winced at the amount. Not even my upcoming birthday would get me this accessory. I sighed, but resolved to be satisfied simply looking at it. After all I didn't really need it, and besides at the moment I had a job to do.

~Slight Timeskip~

I checked over the list once more, and found every item to be checked off. I smiled and pocketed the paper before picking up the basket that held all my things. Then I started for home. Along the way I slowed a little to glance at the necklace one last time, and ran straight into someone.

"I'm so sorry," I said bowing slightly, "I wasn't paying attention to where I was going."

"I-it's okay," I looked up to find myself staring at a brunette boy. His hair defied the laws of gravity, and I recognized him as a kid from my class. For the life of me I was unable to figure out his name, though I was sure that I'd heard it at some point during class.

"You're in my class right?" I asked getting a slightly confused look, "Class 1-A at Namimori Middle you sit somewhere in the middle next to Kyoko-chan."

"H-hai," the boy replied then seemed to realize who I was, "Ah, Hisoka-san I didn't think I'd see you here."

"Yeah, I'm just running some errands for my parents," I answered, "And doing a little window shopping too I guess. Uh, by the way… I don't think I caught you're name."

"It's Sawada Tsunayoshi, but you can just call me Tsuna," my classmate replied. I nodded, and if memory served, now that I knew who he was, he was often called 'Dame-Tsuna' by the other kids. It was not something I was happy about since I wasn't too fond of bullies, but the guy seemed to manage. After all he was friends with Yamamoto and that Italian transfer student Gokudera Hayato.

"I'll keep that in mind Tsuna-san," I smiled as I spoke, "Well, see you tomorrow."

With that I was back to heading home. But as I continued on my way I had the feeling that once again someone was watching me. And I got the sneaking suspicion that whoever was keeping tabs on me was pleased by my interaction with Tsuna. The problem was I didn't know whether that was good or bad for me.

 **Me: So Tsuna and Yuzuki have now officially met, but are still not friends. But you don't have to worry they will get there.**

 **Yuzuki: *claps hands for attention* And for those of you thinking that I ran into Tsuna at the school stop right now because it wasn't him. But you won't have to worry because the identity of the person I ran into will be revealed in time.**

 **Me: *nods in agreement* Yep, so please keep those guesses coming in, and while you're at it let me know what you think so far. Now, I'd like to take this time to say I own nothing of KHR, but I do own my OCs and the plot when it is related to them.**

 **Yuzuki: With that see you all next time.**

 **Me: *waves* Bye~.**


	4. A Sort of Study Session

A Sort of Study Session

It was actually a few days later when I talked with Tsuna again. I was sitting in class bored as the teacher called name after name telling everyone how they did on the math test we had a few days ago. It was no surprise that Gokudera had received one hundred points. I myself had managed to get a ninety-five, though math was not my favorite subject. Then Tsuna and Yamamoto were called.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi, Yamamoto Takeshi," the teacher called out their names. I found myself listening to what he had to say.

"H-hai," Tsuna said standing. Yamamoto followed his lead, and once both were standing the teacher continued.

"Twenty points. You two will be getting extra homework for failing the test," my eyes went wide. I could not understand how someone could have such a bad score. Well, Yamamoto I could understand since he had baseball on his mind along with his schoolwork, but Tsuna; what could possibly result in him having that bad of a score. It was easy to see that no one was surprised, but Kyoko didn't seem to mind. Of course Tsuna still looked completely embarrassed by his terrible score.

~Later~

Third Person POV

Tsuna was walking home worrying about how to get all the questions right. Along the way a hand was placed on his shoulder causing him to stop and turn to and find Yamamoto behind him.

"Yo! Do you want to do the homework together?" the baseball star asked, "It'll be a lot faster with two people than with one."

"Yeah! Sure," Tsuna replied grateful that he wouldn't have to suffer alone.

"Then do it at our house," a young voice said. The source of which was hard to find until the person spoke up again.

"I'm here," it said which had Tsuna looking at a small bush that was situated outside of someone's house. Suddenly the bush pulled itself out of the dirt and spun around to reveal a face hidden among the leaves. Needless to say the brunette freaked out, but Yamamoto didn't seem fazed in the least. Instead he just ended up greeting the young child that had since taken off the costume he'd been wearing.

"Ciaossu," the kid said lifting a hand as he returned the greeting.

"Why are you choosing where we should do our homework?" Tsuna asked angrily, not that it fazed the suit wearing child. Instead he simply turned towards the brunette before replying.

"That's because I'm your tutor," Reborn said simply. Yamamoto seemed confused, which had Tsuna trying to stop Reborn from making things worse. But much to Tsuna chagrin Yamamoto began laughing.

"Tsuna, you have a great tutor," Yamamoto said as he laughed. Tsuna gave his friend a look that said he couldn't believe his friend still thought it was a joke. Reborn then took the time to speak up again.

"By the way, I called Gokudera, and Yuzuki too," he said.

"What?" Tsuna questioned, "Well, I guess it will help. Gokudera-kun and Hisoka-san are really smart," then he seemed to realize what he'd just said, "Eh? You called Hisoka-san over too?!"

~A Little Later~

Yuzuki's POV

I looked at the little slip of paper again. On it was written an address and a request that I head to the place specified to help Tsuna with his work. It was unsigned, and as such had peaked my interest. I'd stopped by my own house in order to drop off my things, and let my parents know I was going to help out a friend. Now I was on the street checking every so often to see if Tsuna's house was nearby. As I rounded the corner I found Yamamoto and Gokudera standing outside of a nice two-story building, and seeing them assured me that this was probably Tsuna's place. I picked up my pace a little until I came to stand next to them.

"Yo," I was greeted by Yamamoto.

"Tch, why are you here?" I glared over at the silver haired Italian.

"For your information someone put this in my bag," I told him waving the paper around, "It's not signed so I thought I'd come and figure out who gave it to me."

Gokudera held my glare for a moment before looking away angrily. Yamamoto just laughed it off and rang the bell. It wasn't long before we were greeted by a woman who I assumed was Tsuna's mom.

"My! Come in," she said from the doorway.

"S-Sorry to intrude," Gokudera stuttered. I made a mental note to tease him about it later; as payback for being rude.

"Konnichiwa," Yamamoto's reply was much simpler. I bowed from my spot in between them.

"Thank you for having us," I straightened and headed up the walkway with the two boys. The three of us headed inside and after kicking off our shoes climbed the staircase. We stopped outside Tsuna's room.

"Welcome," Tsuna said. I raised my hand in greeting though I didn't know if Tsuna was able to see me as Yamamoto moved in front of me.

"Hmm? So this is Tsuna's room," the baseball star said. I peered around the tall boy and found that it was pretty much the average room. The only thing I really found strange was the toddler sitting in a small leather chair. But it wasn't because the kid was sitting in a small leather recliner that made it weird, rather it was the fact that the kid was wearing a suit and a matching fedora. There was also a chameleon sitting on the brim of the fedora. But the strangeness didn't stop there because the kid spoke, and he sounded like an adult with the way he worded his sentence.

"Well, make yourselves at home," the boy said. I blinked and once the shock wore off I realized I was still standing in the doorway.

"Ah, Hisoka-san," Tsuna's voice drew my attention to him. I smiled.

"Yo, Tsuna-san… uh you wouldn't happen to know anything about this," I flashed the note at him, "would you?"

"That was from me," I looked at the child sitting behind Tsuna, "Ciaossu, I'm Tsuna's home tutor Reborn."

"R-Reborn, you can't just go saying things like that!" Tsuna scolded the young boy, "Ah, don't mind him Hisoka-san."

"Um… is he your little brother or something?" I asked. My classmate ended up chuckling nervously. But I decided to ignore it for now in favor of helping the brunette with his work.

~A Little Later~

"This is helping a lot," Tsuna said, "You're really smart Gokudera-kun."

We'd been working for a little while, and I was impressed with Gokudera's knowledge. I knew the guy was smart, but to see him in action was still something that put me in awe (even if his explanations were impossible to understand).

"Surprisingly," my dark haired classmate said. I had to snicker at Yamamoto's comment.

"Shut up!" Gokudera shot back but what he said after had me really confused, "If it is to train the Tenth to become a great Mafia boss, Gokudera Hayato with do anything!"

"You're too loud!" Tsuna scolded.

"Mafia?" I looked at my brunette classmate, "Nah, there's no he'd be involved in something like that; he's just not the type."

"Did you say something Hisoka-san?" Tsuna asked. I shook my head. Not long after I found my suspicions of Yamamoto proved true as he flew through the worksheet.

"Wow!" Tsuna said in amazement. Of course Yamamoto just laughed it off.

"Once I read the textbook, I found out it was pretty easy," my dark haired classmate said. But Gokudera wasn't convinced so he grabbed Yamamoto's paper and looked over the answers. Needless to say he was shocked.

"I-It's right," he said and I couldn't help but snicker at his reaction, "What are you laughing at woman?"

"Your expression," I replied, "it has to be one of the best I've seen recently."

Gokudera fumed at my comment, but before he could think of a way to retort Yamamoto spoke up again.

"I didn't quite get question seven, though," my classmate said. This had Gokudera laughing, but I couldn't really see the humor in this. After all what little I saw of it had my head spinning and my brain frying.

"You're still an idiot, Yamamoto!" the silverette said grinning, "Right, Jyuudaime?"

Upon seeing Tsuna's look though he paused. I lifted an eyebrow. I honestly couldn't believe that he thought Tsuna would be able to solve something Yamamoto couldn't. And really I didn't think that even Gokudera himself could solve it.

"I don't care about question seven, I still don't get half of all this," Tsuna said. I sighed, and deemed question seven out of my league.

"Jyuudaime! You can show your power by solving question seven in no time!" Gokudera tried to encourage the brunette.

"What does power have to do with solving a math problem anyway?" I asked earning a shrug from Yamamoto. The feeling of being watched was suddenly present, and I ignored Tsuna reading the problem. This time though I was able to find the source. The child that was in Tsuna's room was who had been watching me these past few days. The only question I had though was how he'd been able to watch me while I was at school. Suddenly my cellphone buzzed in my pocket, and I pulled it out to look at the message I'd been sent.

"Sorry, but I have to go now," I said bowing, "It was nice seeing you all."

With that I took my leave and headed down the stairs. On my way I passed a girl with dark brown hair carrying snacks up to Tsuna's room. What struck me as odd was that she was wearing a purple bandana over her head, and tied just below her nose. Shaking myself I got to the door and slipped on my shoes. Once I was out the door I began racing home to see what had been so important. If I'd known beforehand what was going to be said I would've taken more time.

 **Me: *sighs* Wow, this chapter got long. So yeah Haru was sort of introduced in this chapter, but Yuzuki won't officially meet her until later. Probably when Kyoko becomes friends with Haru. *clears throat* I also want to say that Yuzuki will probably get along better with Tsuna and the boys just because of her personality. Don't get me wrong she's still a girl and likes hanging out with Kyoko, Hana, and Hiromi but she'd rather be more active than they are.**

 **Yuzuki: *nodding* Yeah, that's true I'm not one to really talk about crushes or things like that, but I won't say no to a little girl time. But like Brightcloud said I'm just not like that. In fact I rather be fighting or playing sports if I have the option.**

 **Me: Anyways hope you enjoyed this chapter and that it didn't seemed forced. And again I'd like to say that I do not own KHR, but I own my OCs and the plot when they are involved.**

 **Yuzuki: Yep, and Brightcloud would also like to apologize for the readers who are looking for some action; that will be coming soon but it'll take a few more chapters before it actually comes about.**

 **Me: Yeah, so until then I ask you to be patient and I will try to get everything out when I can. Until next time ja ne.**

 **Yuzuki: See ya real soon!**


	5. Close Encounter with a Carnivore

Close Encounter with a Carnivore

For the past few days I'd been slightly distracted. The day I'd helped Tsuna and Yamamoto with their work, or was at least present my parents had told me that all the rumors they'd heard about the doctor in Italy were being proven true. That meant I'd likely wind up alone in Namimori with only the friends I'd made to help keep me from being bored. Needless to say Kyoko, Tsuna and the others had noticed. I tried to play it off but even I knew that I wasn't very convincing.

~Lunch~

"Are you sure you're okay Yuzuki-chan?" Hiromi asked worriedly. I nodded.

"Yeah, you don't need to worry about me Hiromi-chan," I said trying my best for a reassuring smile, "Maybe I just need more sleep or something."

"I guess, but…" Hiromi trailed off when Hana sent her a pointed look. In turn I sent a grateful look to Hana, who acknowledged it with a small nod. Once I was finished I stood, and excused myself so I could run the errand our teacher had asked me to do. Apparently there were some papers that needed to be taken to the reception room to be looked over by the committee that had been allowed the use of that room. Unfortunately I had no idea where that room was, and so had to move quickly in order to take care of everything before lunch was over.

~After a Few Minutes~

I arrived to find the door open, and some guy holding, who I assumed were Gokudera and Yamamoto if Tsuna's presence was anything to go to by, out one of the room's windows. The problem was that we were on the second floor, and the boys were unconscious. Before I could do anything to help Reborn showed up and shot Tsuna. And then one of the weirdest things happened. A flame appeared on Tsuna's head and somehow he ended up clothed in only boxers. The rumor of one of the students in class 1-A sprung into my mind; a boy confessing to his crush in nothing but boxers. I had to wonder if that boy was Tsuna, and if Reborn had anything to do with it.

By the time I was back in the present Tsuna was holding the weight of his friends while the stranger was locked in combat with Reborn. Something about the kid really set me on edge. After all he did just shoot Tsuna a few minute ago. Before my thoughts could wander there was an explosion, and I found myself coughing as the smoke cleared.

"What… just happened?" I asked no one in particular waving my hand in front of my face to keep from breathing in the last little bit of dust that still lingered in the air.

"You there," a voice said from above me, "do you have business with me?"

I looked up and locked eyes with the boy who'd been holding my classmates out the window. I swallowed thickly before standing and holding out the papers.

"My teacher told me to deliver these to the committee that was using this room," I said as he took papers from my hand. When he turned around I took that as my cue to leave, which I gladly did. As I passed one of the windows I saw Tsuna, Gokudera and Yamamoto heading back from the pool area. In a split second I decided to take a detour to see if the three were okay.

~A Bit Later~

"Wow, sounds like you guys had a close call," I commented, "Guess I kind of did too then."

"Eh, why do you say that?" Tsuna asked.

"I had to deliver a couple things to him after you guys left," I said, "That reminds me though… what exactly did Reborn shoot at you Tsuna-san?"

"Y-you saw that?" I nodded in answer to Tsuna's question.

"It's called a Dying Will Bullet," Reborn spoke up, "If someone has regrets when shot with one they'll be resurrected with a dying will."

"Um… I'm a little lost here, but what would happen if someone didn't have any regrets when they were shot?" I asked. Reborn smirked, and pulled down his hat a little.

"I'm a hitman," was all he said. I put two and two together, and paled a little. If Tsuna hadn't felt any regrets he would have died for real. Well, that is if the kid was to be believed, but the fact that he spoke so nonchalantly about it spoke volumes and I was forced to the conclusion that he was telling the truth.

"Reborn don't involve Hisoka-san in this," Tsuna nearly yelled.

"Why not? She'd be a great addition to your Family," Reborn said, "And so would her…"

"Ah, I'm not sure I want any part of this," I said waving my hands for emphasis, "But I will say that I'm glad you and the others are okay, Tsuna."

"Huh?" the brunette said questioningly. I smiled.

"It's only natural for friends to worry about each other right?" I asked. It was Yamamoto who answered.

"Right," he said and I smiled at his reply. Then I waved and headed home breathing a sigh of relief. While I really wasn't sure if I wanted to have anything to do with this Mafia business, I was more relieved that I'd stopped Reborn from mentioning my brother. How he got that information was a mystery to me, though being as he was a hitman I wasn't surprised at his knowledge. Shaking off the feeling that I'd be dragged into this business one way or another; my thoughts drifted to what I'd get Arashi for our birthday.

I texted my parents to let them know I was going to swing by the Shopping District to find a gift for Arashi. Thinking about our shared birthday was bitter-sweet for me because my brother would be leaving before we were even able to celebrate it. There were still a few weeks before it actually arrived, but my parents wanted to take Arashi to that doctor as soon as possible so that he'd get better. I sighed, but I didn't blame them because I also wanted my brother to get better as soon as he could.

Once I was in the Shopping District I hopped from store to store looking for something my twin would like. Nothing really caught my eye until I came to a store set right next to the jewelry store that displayed the necklace that I liked. The store was chock full of sports gear and equipment; everything my brother loved was here. I slipped into the store and began looking around for anything my brother might like. I figured that once my brother was better he might join the baseball team at our school as that was his favorite sport, so I was quick to head to the baseball section. Cleats, bats, jerseys and more lined the shelves and hung on racks.

Everywhere I turned there were more baseball related items. By the time I was done looking I'd found a nice cap, some wristbands and a cell phone case with a baseball design on it. I paid for my purchases, and left the store. As I passed the jewelry store I snuck a glance at the window and smiled wryly at the necklace I admired. Then shaking my head I began my trek home.

 **Me: Okay so there's Chapter Four. *pondering* I don't think it's longer than Chapter Three… actually I'm sure it's shorter, but it turned out pretty good in my opinion. *smiling* And Hibari was introduced in this chapter, yay!**

 **Yuzuki: Yep, not for very long, but still he's been officially brought into this story.**

 **Me: *nodding* Yep, and expect to see more of him and Haru now that they've both been brought into this story. And I'm thinking that Yuzuki will probably be tasked with delivering more things to the Disciplinary Committee in the future, and might possibly get on Hibari's nerves as well.**

 **Yuzuki: Great, let the torment begin. But from this point on other characters will show up in order to help with the Disclaimer and Author's Note.**

 **Me: Yep, but for now I'll say the Disclaimer again. So I don't own KHR, but I do own Yuzuki, and my other OCs.**

 **Yuzuki: And Brightcloud0915 also owns the plot when it includes me and her other OCs.**

 **Me: Couldn't have said it better myself Yuzuki. So, with that I leave you all until the next chapter. Goodbye 'til then minna.**

 **Yuzuki: Ja ne.**


	6. Detention is Better than Being Bitten

Detention is Better than Being Bitten to Death

The next day I ended up being late to school. The whole reason was because I'd stayed up late talking with Arashi. We'd been discussing what Italy might be like, along with how things had been going at school for me. I told my twin all about Tsuna and my other friends, and Arashi had teasingly asked me if I had a crush on anyone. I just chuckled a little and shook my head. Because of that though I'd woken up late, and found that my parents were gone along with Haruto. They probably hadn't realized that I hadn't left yet. Arashi was sleeping himself when I dashed out of the room and quickly got ready for school.

As I ran down the street I mentally cursed, and wondered just how I'd be punished. When I finally reached the gate I was panting, and ready for whatever would be thrown my way. However, I wasn't prepared enough.

"Herbivore you're late," I slowly looked up and gulped when I saw Hibari standing in front of me. I shivered a little under his gaze because it wasn't hard to tell that he wasn't pleased with me.

"Ah, g-gomen'nasai Hibari-san," I huffed. The prefect just kept staring at me making me fidget. Finally he turned away and headed into the building.

"Herbivore, if you are ever late again," Hibari said glancing over his shoulder, "I'll bite you to death."

I swallowed and was only able to manage a nod. Then he was gone and I let out the breath I'd been holding. Once I was sure my nerves had settled down I made my way into school, and headed to class. Needless to say being scolded by the teacher was much better than being caught by Hibari.

~Later~

"Eh, Hibari-san caught you, and you survived?!" Hiromi asked incredulously. I nodded in reply. Our entire class was in the middle of cleaning the school. Thankfully Hiromi and I were able to talk as we took care of the windows. My friend whistled in admiration.

"You must have some luck on you to be let off with just a warning," Hiromi commented as she spritzed the window with cleaner, "But why were you late in the first place?"

"Well, I was up late," I answered wiping the window down, "I was talking with my brother about school and lost track of time. I'm just glad that nothing really happened, though I've been warned that if I'm ever late again I'll be bitten to death."

Hiromi nodded, "Then let's hope you aren't ever late again."

I smiled and agreed. I decided that I didn't ever want to get on the bad side of the Disciplinary Committee's Chairman anytime soon. Heck, I really didn't want to see him anytime soon. Unfortunately that's when a teacher came up to me and told me that I had to deliver some very important documents to the reception room, and that I was to stay after school for detention. I groaned, but bid Hiromi farewell, and headed for the reception room. I paused when I saw some of the Disciplinary Committee members standing outside the door. Steeling myself I headed to the door, and was stopped.

"What business do you have here?" one of the boys asked.

"I was told to bring these papers to this room," I answered. The other held out his hand and I handed him the folder with the important information. He turned and knocked on the door and went in once it was opened. Seeing as how my work was done I turned and headed back to help Hiromi. However, as I passed the stairs leading to the roof I had a strange urge to head up and see if anything needed to be taken care of up there. So I went up the stairs, and was just about to push open the door when I heard a huge explosion. Slightly scared I tentatively opened the door to see Tsuna, Kyoko, Yamamoto, Gokudera and Reborn all staring at a young kid dressed in Chinese clothing.

"What exactly is going on here?" I asked stepping out into the open.

"H-Hisoka-san," Tsuna stuttered, "what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing Tsuna-san," I sent back, "I was just coming up here to see if the roof needed to be cleaned. By the way what was that explosion exactly?"

~One Explanation Later~

"So this kid is a walking time bomb?" I asked as I-Pin left; the misunderstanding taken care of.

"Pretty much," Reborn answered. I sweatdropped, but I'd seen some pretty weird things already and I hadn't been here for very long. Then Kyoko seemed to remember something.

"Yuzuki-chan, I was wondering why you were late today," my friend said. I rubbed the back of my head sheepishly.

"Well you see…" I explained everything… well, to a point, "And so that's why I wasn't here on time."

Tsuna seemed surprised that I'd managed to get away alive and I couldn't really blame him. Heck, I was still surprised myself. But I really couldn't worry about that right now, after all I had to stay after school and I had no idea how my parents would take it.

~After School~

Detention was probably the worst thing that had happened to me since moving to Namimori. Not only was I bored since I had no homework to do, but I couldn't read or even take a nap to pass the time. Instead I was stuck looking out the window as the teacher sat at his desk watching the other kids work on their homework. As I continued looking out the window I was surprised to see Hibari walking across the school grounds. Thoughts of why he was here ran through my head, but the one that seemed the most likely was that he was making sure that no one skipped out on detention.

When my train of thought finally came to a halt I started when I realized Hibari was looking directly at me, or he was at least looking at the window I was staring out of. I swallowed thickly as I forcefully turned my attention back to the teacher. When I finally worked up the nerve to look outside again Hibari was gone and I breathed a sigh of relief.

~A Little Later~

"Yuzuki, I'm so sorry," my mother apologized yet again. When my parents had heard that I'd been given detention for being late to school they'd immediately realized that I hadn't left before them.

"It's fine Kaa-san I've learned my lesson," I reassured her again, "It was my own fault for staying up too late; I should've been paying more attention to the clock."

Despite my reassurances I could tell my parents still felt guilty, but it was Arashi that felt the guiltiest. He didn't say it out loud, but I could just tell that he felt responsible for making me late. I sent him a reassuring glance, but it didn't seem to help. And he refused to talk with me that night. I figured that he just needed sometime to realize that I didn't blame him for what happened and that he didn't have to worry about it happening again. So instead of trying to speak with him I just fell asleep all the while wondering what it'd be like when they were gone to Italy.

 **Me: Yosh, this chapter is finished. So Yuzuki narrowly escaped Hibari… well, sort of. She might not have been bitten to death, but she got detention.**

 **Yuzuki: Yeah… I almost think I would have preferred being bitten to death.**

 **Me: I wouldn't recommend it. Anyways today I have Yamamoto here to say the disclaimer.**

 **Yamamoto: Ohayo.**

 **Me: So then, Yamamoto if you please.**

 **Yamamoto: Brightcloud0915 doesn't own KHR but she owns her OCs and the plot when it revolves around them.**

 **Me: Arigatou Yamamoto-san. Well minna, I hope to see you all again and please leave a review in the box below.**

 **Yuzuki: Ja ne minna.**


	7. Boxing Beats Karate

Boxing Beats Karate

A couple days later I was heading to school thinking about what my group would do for our independent research project in Social Studies (though if it was supposed to be independent I had no idea why we were in groups of three). I was just about to round the corner when out of nowhere Tsuna ran by; flame on his forehead and clad only in boxers. I was forced to close my eyes as a gust of wind followed him nearly blowing me over. I shook myself and continued on. When I reached school I found some guy with short white hair kneeling in front of Tsuna. Curious I walked up to my friend just as the guy asked Tsuna to join the boxing club. Something about that rang a couple bells, but I couldn't figure out why.

"Ah, Hisoka-san," Tsuna said when he noticed me. I raised my hand in greeting.

"Yo, Tsuna," I said, "So, you joining the boxing club?"

The look on the brunette's face said it all; he was not joining. However, the guy before him didn't seem to be taking no for an answer. Heck he wasn't even letting Tsuna get a word in edgewise. I was about to speak up when I heard Kyoko's voice.

"Onii-chan!" I glanced over my shoulder to see my friend running towards us. The stranger looked past Tsuna.

"What is it, Kyoko?" he called out. I looked between the two, and couldn't find the resemblance between the two. Still, not all siblings shared similar features so I couldn't really say anything. All the while Tsuna had been muttering to himself before looking behind him.

"You left your bag on the street," Kyoko said walking up to her brother to give him his bag.

"Kyoko-chan?" Tsuna question and I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

"Oh sorry, sorry," Kyoko's brother said.

"Oh, good morning, Tsuna-kun, Yuzuki-chan," Kyoko greeted Tsuna and me.

"Ohayo Kyoko," I said, "Oh, Hiromi and Ryou are probably waiting for me. I talk with you later."

Then I was gone heading to find my group; though I wondered if Hiromi or Ryou would be doing any work or if they'd just wind up staring at each other. I figured it would probably be the latter after all Ryou was Hiromi's crush… well, boyfriend now. Still I figured that they could surprise me.

~Later~

It had taken me a while but I'd finally gotten Ryou and Hiromi to focus on our project long enough to decide on what we were going to do and figuring out who would do what. After that I was just tired, and wanted to go home. Unfortunately that didn't happen. Instead I ended up following the karate club since Kyoko was with them and something didn't seem right with that situation. Hana must have seen it too since I saw her head off to the gym; the part reserved specifically for the boxing club. I figured she went to tell Kyoko's brother about what was going on.

I ended up following them to the boxing club where apparently some guy's older brother was planning on fighting Kyoko's brother. And they said that if they won Kyoko had to join their club and become their manager.

"Hey, you realize that you can't just say something like that right?" I asked getting everyone's attention, "Honestly, Kyoko's her own person. So what if you end up beating her brother; that doesn't mean that she has to join your club."

"Who are you?" one of the karate club members asked. I raised an eyebrow.

"Hisoka Yuzuki, class 1-A," I replied, "And I happen to be one of Kyoko's friends."

Before anything could really happen one of the karate club members let out a cry before keeling over. In his place stood Gokudera. Yamamoto and Bianchi; Gokudera's older sister called out his name.

"If it's for the Tenth, I won't care if my sister is here!" the silverette said.

"What do we do, Reborn?" Bianchi asked. I blinked finally noticing the hitman sitting on one of the corner posts of the ring. He turned to Bianchi as he replied.

"Well, just fight them as you wish," was the reply Reborn gave her. Immediately I knew things were going to get crazy. And I was proven right as the karate club charged followed by our group. A few members surrounded me and I sighed getting into a fighting stance. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. One of the guys decided to throw a punch at me which I caught and deflected without opening my eyes. I ducked when I heard another guy shift then I swept his feet out from under him before springing back to my own.

A kick was launch at my torso so I leaned back and to my left grabbing the guy's arm and using him to pull myself back up. The last guy tried to tackle me but I leaped up flipping so that I was parallel to the ground. As the guy passed under me I set my hands on his back and pushed off; which had him landing in a heap and had me landing on my feet. I looked over my shoulder at the three guys on the ground and sighed again before looking at the damage everyone else had caused. Ryohei had taken down multiple members as well as their captain. The victims of Bianchi's poison cooking lay on the floor groaning.

The ones Gokudera had tackled had smoking clothes and were covered in soot. The members of the karate club that had tried to attack Yamamoto lay on the ground having missed hitting him and wound up on the ground gasping for air. And finally Tsuna had managed to take down the captain's younger brother. I stayed and helped clean up since I didn't need to be scolded by a teacher or worse Hibari. As it was when I left the sun was close to setting. Before I got far I ended up bumping into the karate club still looking soundly beaten. I apologized and made to move by them when I heard a voice that had me pausing. The moment I did one of the karate club members grabbed me and he was shaking like a leaf. I wouldn't have minded much if his arms hadn't been wrapped around my waist.

"What are you doing here?" the person asked. I recognized the voice but at the moment I couldn't concentrate enough in order to place it.

"Hiba… ri… san," the captain's brother said. And I'd never been happier to hear that name; well, at least since I'd moved here.

"If you're crowding," Hibari said, "I'll kill you."

Shivers went up my spine as I wondered if he included me in that sentence. Glancing around the group of guys I had to think that he did. Still I was glad for that as the karate club fled, and the guy holding me released me. I swallowed when I felt eyes on me, though when I looked Hibari was looking past me to the boxing club. I silently let out a breath of relief and continued on my way.

Before I got too far I turned back, as an afterthought, and said, "Arigatou Hibari-san."

The prefect merely sent me a glance and said nothing. I simply nodded and immediately headed for home once more.

 **Me: Alright there's Chapter Six for you. Man it's taking longer than I expected to get to the good stuff. But don't worry it shouldn't be too much longer until we get into some fun stuff.**

 **Yuzuki: Actually I think next chapter will be fun.**

 **Me: Why do you say that?**

 **Yuzuki: *whispers in my ear***

 **Me: You're right that will be fun. Alright then for now I bid you all adieu, but before we go; Tsuna will you please say the disclaimer.**

 **Tsuna: H-hai, Brightcloud0915 doesn't own KHR but she own Yuzuki and her other OCs.**

 **Me: Arigatou Tsuna-san. And with that Ja ne.**


	8. Suits, Sports Cars, and Fake Kidnappings

Suits, Sports Cars, and Fake Kidnappings

A few days after the fiasco with the boxing and karate clubs I was walking with Tsuna to his house. The reason behind this was because he had asked me to help him with his homework.

 _*flashback*_

 _"A-Ano, Hisoka-san," I turned to find Tsuna standing behind me._

 _"What do you need Tsuna-san?" I asked. The brunette fidgeted a bit before he replied._

 _"I was wondering if y-you'd help me with my homework," my friend said. I smiled._

 _"Sure, I'd be glad to… but," I said, "Why didn't you ask Yamamoto or Gokudera?"_

 _"Well, Yamamoto has baseball practice today," Tsuna replied, "And I don't really understand it when Gokudera explains the problems."_

 _"Say no more," I said, "I'll just have to let my parents know I'm going to a friend's house."_

 _"Arigatou Hisoka-san," Tsuna said happily._

 _*flashback end*_

And that is how I ended up walking home with Tsuna. We were just about there Tsuna suddenly spoke up.

"I bet Reborn is waiting for me at home," he said, "Maybe I should run away."

"Well, if you do make sure to write okay," I teased. Tsuna chuckled a little, but suddenly paused. It wasn't hard to figure out why. There were some strange men dressed in suits standing outside his house. I had to wonder as Tsuna screamed if we were even at the right house. Some of the men looked over when they heard Tsuna and I prepared myself to help the brunette if the men proved hostile. However, that was not the case, but what happened was even more confusing.

"Welcome home, Master Sawada Tsunayoshi," one of the men said. I shared a look with Tsuna who was just as confused about everything as I was. The men had formed two rows, and were standing at attention.

"Go ahead," another man said. I helped Tsuna stand and kept a comforting hand on his shoulder as we cautiously walked past the men. When we came to the path that led to his door he ended up freaking out, and bolting into the house leaving me standing behind. I blinked then sighed before walking up to the door, and knocking. It was quickly opened and I was immediately pulled inside.

"Welcome home, Tsu-kun," Tsuna's mother said, "Oh, Yuzuki-chan it's nice to see you again."

"Same here Sawada-san," I returned with a bow.

"Oh, Tsu-kun we have a guest." Nana said.

"What?" Tsuna asked slipping off his shoes. I followed his lead, and when he stormed upstairs I wasn't far behind. The moment he arrived outside his room he threw open the door.

"Reborn! What did you do now?!" he asked. However he was immediately confused when he saw two other men in his room.

"They're in the house too!" Tsuna cried out. I looked past my brunette friend to see the two men standing on either side of Reborn. There was a black chair situated close to the window, and in front of it was a low white table.

"We've been waiting, Tsuna," Reborn said as though it was normal for strange people to just be standing outside a place, or in it; though really I supposed in his line of work that would be fairly normal. Reborn inclined his head to me once he noticed me and I returned the gesture.

"What is this?" Tsuna asked.

"I'm curious about all this as well," I said.

"Yo, head of the Vongola," a voice said; it came from the chair that was turned towards the window.

"Huh?" was all Tsuna could manage to say.

"I've come all the way from Italy to visit," then the chair was spun around to reveal a blond who looked to be in his twenties, "I'm the tenth-generation boss of the Cavallone Family. My name's Dino."

"Cavallone… As in mafia?" Tsuna asked. I blinked; true I'd heard Reborn say that Tsuna was going to be the next boss of the Vongola family, but I hadn't really believed it. But that was the only explanation for a mafia boss to be visiting a middle schooler. Dino's eyes hardened briefly which freaked Tsuna out even more, but it seemed like nothing was meant by it as the blond started laughing.

"This is no good," Dino said standing up. He walked over to Tsuna who stepped back.

"You have no aura. You don't look daring. You have no drive, and there's no anticipation about you," I glared; even though there might be a point to this I didn't like it when people bad-mouthed my friends.

"Your legs are short, too. You have no money and no power," but I wasn't about to mess with Reborn. Still I planned to let Dino have if I got the chance.

"He looks unlucky, too," Dino commented looking at Reborn as he said it, "He has zero talent as a boss."

"Yup," Reborn said. The other men in the room started chuckling, and I guess that's when I lost it. The next thing I knew Dino was holding his cheek looking at me in shock. It took me a minute to catch up with what had happened, but after a minute I realized that I had slapped him. Reborn was smirking and the two men were just as shocked as Dino. When I glance at Tsuna over my shoulder I saw that he was shocked as well, but he was also grateful.

"Ah, g-gomen'nasai," I apologized with a bow.

"To answer your question Tsuna," Reborn said breaking the tension, "Dino is your senior pupil."

"A senior pupil?" Tsuna asked. I was just as confused. Since it seemed like it would take a while for things to be explained we all sat down; well, all of us except the two men with Dino.

"I said a lot of harsh things, but don't take it badly, Vongola Tenth… though I suppose it's a little late to say that," I blushed in embarrassment as Dino spoke, "Before I met Reborn, I had no talent for being a boss."

"Before meeting Reborn?" Tsuna asked, "Does that mean…?"

"Before I came here, I was training Dino to become a mafia boss," Reborn said.

"Seriously?!" Tsuna asked.

"Why would he have a reason to lie Tsuna-san?" I asked, "Though I guess it would be a shock to learn that someone else trained under him."

Dino nodded, "Reborn's lessons were no easy tasks. There were many times I thought I'd die."

I had to wonder just how Reborn trained them. However, after thinking that I decided that I didn't want to know, especially when I saw Tsuna's face.

"Thanks to him I'm now a boss in charge of five thousand Families," Dino said and I had to admit I was a little bit impressed, "The truth is, I wanted to learn a lot more from Reborn, but he said he had to go to you, so I saw him off."

"Um… I have no interest in becoming a mafia boss whatsoever," Tsuna said, "I don't mind if you take Reborn back with you."

Dino's eyes gained a hard edge and I prepared to step in if necessary. Tsuna shrieked, and fell backwards but just like before Dino started to laugh.

"Just like Reborn says," the blond said, "You're exactly like I used to be."

I looked between the two, but I just couldn't imagine the Cavallone boss as being anything like Tsuna. But I decided that it was simply because I hadn't known him before he met Reborn.

"I had no interest in taking the seat of boss. There're no good guys in the mafia, after all," Dino said.

"No… but I…" Tsuna tried to speak but failed.

"Reborn is definitely great," Tsuna's senior said, "You'll probably become a great boss. But if you say you'll never do it…" here Dino reached for something in his jacket pocket. I was immediately on guard, but when he drew his arm out he was holding a turtle. Tsuna screamed a fell backwards, while I pulled an anime fall.

"…I'll bite," I facepalmed at his bad joke. Tsuna was still in shock but I knew he was relieved that it was just a turtle that Dino had pulled out of his pocket and not something else. And truthfully so was I.

"That's rude, Boss," one of other men in the room said. His hair was black and he wore glasses.

"His name is Enzo. When I asked Reborn for Leon, he gave me this guy instead," Dino explained.

"Leon is my partner, after all," Reborn simply said. I really couldn't wrap my mind around what they were saying. Thankfully at that moment I-Pin and Lambo ran into the room. Unfortunately, my grateful moment was ruined when Lambo tripped and the two grenades he was carrying flew out the window. To make matters worse the pins had been pulled as well and Dino's men were outside still. It was then that Dino jumped from the window and pulled a whip out of seemingly nowhere. My respect went up when he lassoed the grenades and tossed them up into the sky where they exploded safely.

~A While Later~

"Well, I'd best be getting home," I said standing, "I hope I was of some help Tsuna-san."

"You were," Tsuna said, "Arigatou Hisoka-san."

I smiled, "Ja ne."

Then I headed downstairs. Along the way I passed Dino who I guessed was probably on his way to inform Tsuna that dinner was ready; at least if the smell was anything to go by. I still felt sort of guilty for slapping him earlier, but I couldn't take it back; not that I really wanted to. Still I couldn't help but apologize again.

"Ano, Dino-san," I started and he paused looking over at me, "about earlier… I'm very sorry."

Dino laughed it off, "Don't worry about it. You were just being a good friend."

"Still I feel bad about," I said, "but I'm glad you understand why I did it. See ya around Dino-san."

~At Dinner~

*Third Person View*

"Oh, yeah," Dino began directing his question to Reborn, "Does Tsuna have a Family yet?"

"Right now there's only Gokudera and Yamamoto. The prospective ones are Hibari, and Sasagawa Ryohei," Reborn replied, "Well, there's also Hisoka Yuzuki, but her case is more complicated."

"Those are just friends and upperclassmen!" Tsuna said angrily. Dino however, looked thoughtful and promised himself that he'd talk with Reborn about Yuzuki and the reason she was a special case.

~The Next Day~

The next morning I found myself walking a slightly different path than usual. The strangest thing was that it actually took me a little past Tsuna's house. I figured that since I was actually early I'd wait for my friend and head to school with him. Needless to say I was not expecting a red sports car to go speeding by and Gokudera and Yamamoto to appear a few moments later. However, they didn't stop so I decided to follow them. We wound up outside of a building with a sign that read Momokyokai.

"Ne, isn't this a building a Yakuza group owns?" I asked. My two classmates spun around.

"What are you doing here?" Gokudera asked.

"I could ask you the same thing Gokudera-san," I shot back. The silverette just 'tched' and looked away, so Yamamoto answered.

"We came to save Tsuna," the baseball star said. I blinked.

"Eh? Tsuna-san's here?" I asked, "So what's the plan?"

"What's it to you?" Gokudera growled. I sent him a glare.

"Tsuna-san's my friend too," I said, "I'm not just going to sit by and let him get hurt."

"Maa, maa fighting isn't going to help," Yamamoto said trying to ease the tension. Thankfully, it worked and Gokudera and I made a silent truce. I took a look at the building; it appeared to have three floors. With that layout it would make sense for Tsuna to be on either the second or top floor. The entrance seemed to be unguarded but I couldn't be sure from our vantage point.

"Well, the place seems to only have the three floors," I said gaining the boys' attention, "It seems likely given the layout that Tsuna would be held on one of the top floors. The problem I see is actually getting in the building."

"What are you talking about woman?" Gokudera asked. I glared at him but pushed aside the retort that was begging to be released.

"The door is wide open," I pointed out, "The only reasons for that are; one: they feel comfortable in their environment; two: they're idiots who don't care if some random person walks in; or three: there are guards somewhere close by."

After my astute observation we decided that one of us should go have a look and see if guards were stationed anywhere. I _volunteered_ to take care of the recon, but it wasn't much of a recon as no guards had been posted. I was quick to wave the others over when I discovered this fact. After we'd infiltrated the building the three of us were quick to climb the stairs. At the top we found a door located around the corner. We wasted no time in going straight to it, and going in. After that it was pretty much chaos as the three of us took on the Yakuza members.

~A Little Later~

I was leaning against the wall as Gokudera and Yamamoto _interrogated_ some of the Yakuza members who were still conscious. By this point I figured they were either very loyal, or didn't have a clue what we were even doing here. That was why I wasn't too surprised when the door leading to the hall opened to reveal Dino and Tsuna. I raised my hand in greeting, but the bosses' focus was on Gokudera and Yamamoto.

"They've beaten them?" Tsuna asked incredulously. Tsuna's voice caught Gokudera attention, and the silverette was quick to throw the guy he'd been _interrogating_ into some cabinets.

"Jyuudaime! You're all right!" it was easy to see the Gokudera was both happy and relieved. Yamamoto looked up as though nothing had really happened.

"You seem well," he commented smiling.

"Uh, yeah," was all Tsuna could manage. I chuckled a little.

"These guys are really something," Dino said.

"Tell, me about it," I said, "I barely got to do anything. And here I was hoping I'd get to show off."

Our good mood was ruined by the appearance of some other Yakuza members. These were obviously stronger, and that meant that they were probably at the top of their little gang. In fact one of them wore a shirt that said boss on it. He even carried a wooden katana; which seemed a little clichéd to me. I ignored what was being said in favor of taking in these new opponents; though I was dimly aware of Dino saying to leave them to him. Still it didn't hurt to be prepared, though I wasn't prepared to feel a stinging on my cheek which brought me back to reality. It turned out that Dino was no good without the support of his men, and had hit Gokudera; Yamamoto; me and himself in the face with his whip. I had to wonder how I was going to explain this to my parents.

The next thing I knew was that Tsuna had been shot and was not only in his boxers but his hands had gotten bigger, like abnormally so. My brunette friend was able to take out three of the men by himself; including the boss. But three other men tried to jump him. Unfortunately for them Gokudera, Yamamoto and I weren't about to let them lay a hand on Tsuna. Not long after Dino's men showed up, and the fight was over before it had even begun. After that the rest of the day promised to be pretty dull.

~A Bit Later~

"Hisoka," Dino said once we'd reached the ground floor. I turned to him questioningly.

"What is it Dino-san?" I asked. He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Sorry about that mishap up there," he apologized.

"What this?" I pointed at the red mark on my cheek before waving my hand dismissively, "Don't worry about it."

"But…" I held up a hand and cut Dino off.

"It's perfectly fine," I said, "Besides it kind of evens the odds don't you think?"

Tsuna's senior chuckled, "I suppose it does."

"Right," I said then looked over my shoulder when I heard Tsuna call my name, "It was nice seeing you again, but we should be getting to school. Until next time Dino-san."

Thankfully we were able to get to school on time, but like I'd thought everything was pretty dull after fighting with the Yakuza.

EXTRA

"Hey onee-chan, where'd you get that mark?" I stiffened when I heard Haruto's voice. And the moment he said that everyone noticed it. Thoughts flashed rapidly through my mind as I tried to think of how to answer this question.

"Ah, that well, at school one of my friends tripped and accidently hit me in the face," I replied, "Truthfully I'd forgotten about it 'til now."

"Well, as long as you're not hurt," my mother said.

"I'm perfectly fine," I said, "I mean yeah it hurt at first but everything's good now."

And with that everyone was satisfied… well, except for Arashi. But I knew I could never keep any secrets from him, well any important secrets. Sometimes having a twin could be such a pain.

 **Me: Well, there you have it… and a pretty long chapter if I do say so myself. Hmm… do I really like Dino that much to put the entire episode (well mostly) into this fanfic?**

 **Yuzuki: I'd think so. Heck I think I've talked with him more than anybody save Tsuna-san.**

 **Me: I guess you have. Well, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and we'll see you next time, but first I have Dino-san here to say the disclaimer for today.**

 **Dino: Brightcloud0915 doesn't own KHR but she owns Yuzuki and her other OCs along with the plot when it involves them.**

 **Me: Thank you so much Dino-san, and with that I bid you farewell until the next update. See ya then!**

 **Yuzuki: Bye~!**


	9. Party Planning and a Failed Job Hunt

Party Planning and a Failed Job Hunt

A few days passed after I met Dino, and all of them were pretty weird. Tsuna got some sort of strange disease. In order to cure it we had to track down this pervy doctor who only treated women. Needless to say he wound up with a black eye, and Tsuna was cured. Then Lambo came to deliver Tsuna's lunch, but it got mixed up with nitro that I-Pin had been tasked with delivering somewhere. Thankfully everything had been taken care of with no problems. Then after that Haru and Kyoko had almost died after eating I-Pin's special Gyoza Buns. But after running around a little trying to find I-Pin's master everything turned out okay. At least I couldn't claim that my life was boring.

"Hey Hisoka-san," I looked to see Yamamoto waving at me. Curious I headed over to him to see what was going on.

"Yo Yamamoto, what's up?" I asked.

"The kid's going to be helping Gokudera and me to train tomorrow," the baseball star said, "He wanted me to tell you and ask you to come."

"Tomorrow… sorry but I can't," I apologized, "I promised my parents that I'd stay home and help them figure out what we'd be doing for my birthday."

"Oh, your birthday is coming up?" Yamamoto asked. I nodded.

"Yep, after the New Year I'll officially be fourteen," I said, "Ah well there's always next time. See ya around Yamamoto-san."

~At Yuzuki's House the Next Day~

"Yosh, I think that settles everything!" I sighed flopping down next to Arashi. My brother smiled before the two of us busted up.

"Nee-chan you're being so dramatic," my brother said.

"Well, one of us has to be," I shot back. We continued laughing for a little bit before Arashi suddenly stopped. I looked over at my twin, and found that he seemed downcast.

"Ne, Yuzuki-nee am I… am I a burden to you?" I sent him a curious look, "I mean you have to look out for me, and you've been lying to your friends about me. And once we celebrate our birthday I'll be going to Italy with mom, dad and Haruto; you'll be here alone."

"Arashi…" I murmured before I grabbed his shoulders and forced him to look at me, "You're not a burden. Not to me or anyone. True I don't like lying to my friends, and having to make excuses about why they can't come over but I would hate for something to happen to you even more. And hey if going to Italy helps you get better than that's what you have to do. So I want you to smile, and no more talk of you being a burden okay."

"Nee-chan… right I'm sorry; I just couldn't help but wonder," my brother said shaking himself, "I promise I won't think about it anymore."

But even though he said that I knew he still felt like he was dragging me down. Then I remembered what our mother had said.

"Hey, you know kaa-san said that I could invite a couple friends if I wanted to," I said, "So, we could always do that."

Arashi smiled, "Yeah there's always that, but won't mom and dad know?"

"Well, not if we…" and I explained my plan to him.

 _'Arashi I want you to smile, and even if mom and dad find out I'll gladly take the punishment if I can make you happy even for a moment,'_ I thought as I saw my brother smile, _'And one day that won't be a problem because you'll be better, and you won't have to hide.'_

~A Few Weeks Later~

"A party?" Tsuna asked when I told him about my birthday. The party would be held a couple weeks after New Year's though still a week or two before the actual day of my birth.

"Yep, and I'm inviting you, Gokudera, Yamamoto, Kyoko and Haru," I said, "I hope you'll come."

"He won't miss it," Reborn said showing up out of nowhere. Tsuna began arguing about how Reborn couldn't just accept for him. Then he turned to me and promised that he'd be there; I think he thought I'd think that he didn't want to come. I laughed.

"Well, I look forward to seeing you," I said, "See you later Tsuna-san; I have to go invite the others."

~After New Year's~

It was finally the day. I looked over my attire and Arashi's; making sure that it was exactly the same. Once I was satisfied I shared a determined look with my brother.

"Remember, if you start feeling sick, or uncomfortable just come get me and we'll switch places," I reminded my brother. Arashi nodded.

"I won't forget nee-chan," Arashi said smiling, "Thank you for this though."

"Don't worry… after all you'd have to meet them eventually," I said, "Ah, you do remember what I told you about them right?"

"Hai, you don't have to worry nee-san I'll be fine," Arashi said.

"I know… I'm just a little nervous is all," I admitted, "This is the first time in a while that we've done this."

"Yeah, but I still know how to act like you," my twin said, "And I know you know how to act like me. Everything will be fine."

"You're right Arashi-nii, sorry for being so worried," I said. Arashi placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. I smiled and Arashi returned it. Then there was a knock on the door.

"It's time," I said.

"Yeah," Arashi nodded before he headed downstairs, "Wish me luck nee-san."

"Good luck," I said and my brother smiled.

~Downstairs~

*Third Person POV*

"So you're Yuzuki's friends," Yuki, Yuzuki's mother said, "I'm glad she has such good friends."

"It's nice to meet you Hisoka-san," Tsuna said. Yamamoto and Gokudera thanked her for having them. Kyoko and Haru weren't far behind. Then Shun; Yuzuki's father poked his head out of the kitchen.

"Yuki I need a little help in here," he said, "Oh, why don't you kids head into the living room. Yuzuki, you're friends are here!"

"I'm coming tou-san," Yuzuki called down and not long after the girl herself was at the bottom of the stairs. She immediately headed into the living room. Outside she paused, and listened.

"So do any of you like my onee-chan?" Haruto's voice floated out, "'Cause if you do you'll have to deal with me!"

"Hey now Haruto," Yuzuki said stepping into the room, "you aren't bothering my friends are you?"

"Onee-chan," Haruto said, "Of course not," Yuzuki raised her eyebrow, "Anyways happy birthday!"

Then after Yuzuki was given a quick hug by her little brother; Haruto fled the room. Yuzuki just shook her head and smiled. Then she turned to her friends with an apologetic look on her face.

"Gomen'nasai minna," Yuzuki said, "Haruto can get carried away at times."

"It's no problem Yuzuki-chan," Kyoko said reassuringly, "It was actually kind of cute how he was looking out for you like that."

Yuzuki laughed a little, and was soon joined by Kyoko and Haru. After that they just sat and talked for a little while. After a few minutes Yuzuki suddenly paused, and looked around.

"Is something wrong?" Haru asked. Yuzuki shook her head.

"No… though for a minute I felt as though I was being watched," the dark haired girl admitted. Tsuna paled a little.

 _'It couldn't be…'_ the brunette thought, _'There's no way he'd be here.'_

As time went by gifts were given to the now year older Yuzuki. After opening each gift she'd smile at the one who gave it to her and thank them. But as Tsuna watched her he couldn't help but think that something was different. Yuzuki was starting to look a little pale and her breathing was a little ragged; though no one else seemed to notice. Then the dark haired girl stood and excused herself for a moment claiming that she wanted to show them something. When she returned her face didn't seem so pale, and her breathing was back to normal as well.

She then proceeded to show her guests a sketchbook filled with drawings of animals, and them.

"Did you draw these?" Haru asked amazement filling her voice. Yuzuki nodded.

"Yeah, I draw whenever I have the free time. The park is a great spot; I find the loveliest settings and some pretty cute birds," she said, "And of course I couldn't help but draw you guys… uh, you don't mind do you?"

"Not at all Yuzuki-chan," Kyoko said.

"They're good so I won't complain," Gokudera commented to which Yuzuki let out a light laugh.

"I'm glad you like them," she said, and Tsuna couldn't help but wonder if he'd been imagining things earlier. After all now Yuzuki seemed fine.

~Later~

I watch as all my friends left and smiled. Arashi had really liked them I could tell when he'd come upstairs, even though he'd looked out of breath. Truthfully I hadn't planned on showing them my sketchbook, but Arashi had forced my hand when he'd said he wanted to show them something. Still, it was probably better that way. But this day was marred by the fact that the day after tomorrow Arashi would be heading to Italy with mom, dad and Haruto. That night I joked with him telling him that if he saw Dino he should say hello to him. But neither one of us could really get into it.

The whole next day my family packed. My parents reminded me that they'd leave me some money, but I'd have to ask the school for permission to get a part time job. So with that in mind I visited the principal's office the moment I arrived at school. I told him of my dilemma, and he agreed that I could get a job so long as when my parents got back I dropped it. I accepted his terms and decided that after school let out I'd go job hunting.

~After School~

Just before I'd left school I'd contacted my parents to let them know I'd be searching for a job. After doing that I headed to the shopping district to see if there was a position open. After a few hours of wandering I began to think that nobody was going to hire me. Discouraged I bought some takoyaki and found a bench to sit down and eat at. I sighed as I opened the box, and popped one of the fried treats into my mouth. I had to admit it was good, though it did little to make me feel better. Once I'd finished my food I just sat there for a while looking up at the sky.

Suddenly I had a feeling that someone was watching me. I sat up properly and looked around. I found the source to be a boy who looked like he should probably be in high school. His hair was pulled into the regent style and he wore a black jacket with a band on his left arm. Immediately I realized that he was a member of the Disciplinary Committee, and if memory served he was the vice-chairman; Kusakabe Tetsuya. I shuddered a little wondering if he had been following me, but my suspicions were proven false as Hibari rounded the corner seemingly bored. I swallowed thickly and stood heading back the way I'd come from. I didn't dare look back instead I ducked into one of the stores along the street.

As fate would have it the building was the place that sold the tiger necklace that I liked. It seemed like every time I came to the shopping district this shop was always some part of my routine. I wanted to bang my head against the wall, but before I could really make up my mind Hibari and Kusakabe walked in. Now instead of banging my head against a wall I wanted one to fall on me and crush me. And to make matters worse they headed straight for me. I ran over the day in my head wondering if I'd done something wrong, but nothing came up.

"Herbivore," I gave a little jolt when Hibari addressed me, "I was informed you were getting a part time job," I remained silent though I had to wonder why he seemed to care about it, "Such actions are prohibited by the school unless given permission."

"For your information I was given permission," I said glaring at the prefect. He just sent me a look that said he didn't care. I grit my teeth, and tried not to say anything I'd regret… I wasn't successful.

"You know what I have reasons for getting this job," I growled, "Very good reasons, which I don't have to tell you. The principal gave me his permission to get this job, and that's all you need to know. So I'd appreciate it if you stayed out of my business from here on out."

With that I stormed out of the store and once I turned the corner I bolted for home. All the way there I couldn't help but think that I was going to die. The only question was a matter of when.

 **Me: *O.O* So Yuzuki just told Hibari off, and we are getting closer to some exciting things.**

 **Yuzuki: I'm so dead… So, so, so dead. Hibari's gonna kill me.**

 **Me: Um… yeah, that's a definite possibility. *clears throat* Well, um anyways hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and I'll be back soon with Chapter Nine. Today Haru is here to say the disclaimer.**

 **Haru: Brightcloud0915 doesn't own KHR but she owns Yuzuki and her other OCs.**

 **Me: I also own the plot when it involves said OCs. So until we get to Chapter Nine sayonara minna.**

 **Yuzuki: Ja ne.**


	10. I'm a Terrible Friend

I'm a Terrible Friend

After the whole job fail I avoided going to the shopping district for a couple days. Thankfully when I told my friends of my dilemma; leaving out the part about possibly signing my death warrant, Yamamoto's dad was kind enough to let me work at his sushi restaurant. A few days after I started I found out that Tsuna had somehow wound up in the hospital, and I decided to go visit him. When I arrived I found that I wasn't the first to show up; Dino and his men had beaten me.

"Yo Tsuna-san, how're you feeling?" I asked once I managed to navigate my way through the forest of suits.

"Hisoka-san," Tsuna said sounding a little surprised, "Ah, I'm feeling much better now. Ano… don't you have to work?"

I shook my head, "No I was given today off, so I decided to come visit you. Oh, and it's nice to see you too Dino-san."

Before the blond could reply Tsuna's roommates suddenly freaked out and ran out of the room. Though to be fair Dino did have a lot of his men with him. Not long after they returned with a nurse in tow. And I was not very fond of her. Tsuna was escorted to another room; this one private and fairly big. However, the nurse blamed him for Dino's mistake. I could feel my hands curl themselves into fists, and willed myself to calm down. After I was completely calm I had to wonder if she was having a bad day. So, I decided that I'd let this accusation slide for now. Thankfully Tsuna wasn't upset with the change; in fact he liked being in a room that he had all to himself.

I was glad when Dino showed up and apologized, and it was good to see Yamamoto coming to visit Tsuna. I was pretty surprised when Yamamoto's dad showed up and put together a small sushi shop, but I figured it wasn't the weirdest thing I'd seen. After Yamamoto's dad left I excused myself to go get us all something to drink. When I returned Gokudera was about to run out so I stepped out of the way, but the silverette found his path blocked by his sister. The poor boy wound up on the floor clutching his stomach.

"Romeo!" I heard Bianchi say as though surprised. However, when I followed her gaze all I saw were wisps of pink smoke and Lambo. However, Tsuna's look was filled with relief.

"I guess it was my imagination," Gokudera's sister said looking towards the sushi stand, "Eat this instead of that stuff," she said walking over to Tsuna with a sinister looking purple cake in hand.

"Eat this?" Tsuna asked though when he saw what it was he immediately got off the bed and headed for the door, "I'll pass!"

Suddenly there were voices from outside the doors. Apparently some of the nurses had seen Tsuna's guests, and like most girls wanted to see them up close. Unfortunately they ended up breaking the door down right on top of Tsuna. And then that nurse that I didn't like took Tsuna to another private room that was much smaller than the one he had just been in. And then she blamed Tsuna for inviting guests that _seduced_ the nurses. But could you really seduce someone without trying. I ended up excusing myself again since I figured I'd probably never be allowed back in if I assaulted a staff member. But when I returned I found that Tsuna had been moved yet again.

This time it had gone too far. The room he'd been moved to was small, dark and had jars filled with animals… heck, it was just plain creepy. So I decided to have a little talk with this nurse. When I found her she was busy scolding a younger nurse for dropping something, though she was much nicer about than she was when she was getting after Tsuna. I waited until she was done before gaining her attention.

"You know I'm not too fond of the way you've been treating my friend," I said, "For starters he wasn't to blame for all those men visiting him, true there shouldn't have been that many but that's still no cause to blame him. Second, he didn't invite the people who you claim _seduced_ ," I air quoted here, "those nurses; they came to visit him because they're good friends. And he was just making lunch for those other patients," she tried to speak here but I cut her off, "I don't have any clue what you're problem is but Tsuna needs just as much care as any of these other patients; possibly more due to accidents that have happened in this hospital. And if you kick him out just for things that were beyond his control then that's just wrong. Well, I've had my say so I'll be going now."

And with that I turned and headed right back to Tsuna's room only to find that once again he'd gotten himself hurt. And despite all that I had said to that nurse still wound up being upset with him, though this one was kind of his fault. The nurse led us down several halls since I decided to stay with him until things were settled.

"Normally, we'd have you leave the hospital," the nurse said, "But because another patient was kind enough to offer, you'll be sharing a room with him."

I could tell Tsuna was glad that the hospital had let him stay, but that he was worried about what his roommate would be like.

"It'll be fine Tsuna," I said, "I'll help you settle in and make sure that you're comfortable."

Finally we stopped outside of a room. However, the nurse seemed to be on edge and even lowered her voice when she spoke.

"Here," she said before heading back the way we'd come, "I'll be going now."

"Tsuna-san I have a bad…" but I wasn't able to finish as Tsuna knocked on the door.

"Excuse me," he said before he pulled the door open. Then he froze. I slowly peeked past him and immediately plastered myself to the wall. Hibari was Tsuna's roommate, and that did not bode well for either of us.

"Yo," Hibari said.

"Hibari-san?! It can't be!" Tsuna said fear etched in his very being, "Why are you at the hospital?!"

"My cold took a turn for the worse," I couldn't believe that he'd been absent from school because of a cold and had gone to a hospital for it, "Although I'm mostly better now, I thought I'd be cautious and stay under medical care."

"I… I see," Tsuna replied, though I could tell that he didn't then he looked to the side, "What happened here?!"

"Them?" Hibari asked so I assumed someone was in the room, "We were playing a game to kill time, but they were so weak. I'm having those who share this room with me participate in a game. The rules are simple," I felt a chill creep up my spine, "If you make any noise while I'm sleeping, I'll bite you to death."

I blanched and felt my mind go blank. Once I returned to the world of the living I found Tsuna at the window throwing something out of it. There was an explosion not long after. I immediately paled and looked into the room. Thankfully Hibari was still asleep. The next thing I knew was that Tsuna had grabbed I-Pin and thrown her out the window. I almost yelled at him when there was another explosion, and that immediately silenced my protests. Luckily even that hadn't woken Hibari up. Tsuna was relieved, but not long after he freaked out. A rose petal was falling, which I wasn't sure why it freaked Tsuna out… until it hit the table. I could tell that somehow it had woken Hibari up, when the two loud explosions hadn't. Without really thinking I pulled Tsuna away from the door, though the way I did it put me right in Hibari's line of sight.

"You," I shivered and looked over at the prefect.

"Yo Hibari-san," I said weakly, "Ah, excuse me, but I have somewhere to be."

And with that I took off. I sent a silent apology to Tsuna and ducked down a hallway. I wasn't sure if Hibari was following me or not, but I wasn't about to wait around to find out.

~The Next Day~

"Gomen'nasai Tsuna-san," I apologized, "If I hadn't left you this might not have happened."

I'd found out via Yamamoto that Hibari had beaten up Tsuna after I'd run. The poor boy had both his legs and arms bandaged along with his chest, jaw and head.

"It's okay Hisoka-san," Tsuna tried to reassure me, "I'm just glad you're okay. But Hibari-san seemed even angrier after you left."

"He did," I asked, "Well… about that…"

"Nani?!" Tsuna burst out when I'd finished telling him about what really happened when I'd been looking for a job, "You really did that?"

I nodded, "Yeah, and I guess he's still mad about it… or he's still mad at me I guess. I'm sorry you got hurt because of it. I'll make it up to you someday though, I promise."

After that we talked for a little while before I had to leave. I felt a little better that Tsuna didn't blame me for what had happened to him, but I still felt guilty about it, and I doubted that would change any time soon.

 **Me: And that's a wrap for Chapter… Nine right? Yeah, Chapter Nine. Okay so I hope you all enjoyed it.**

 **Yuzuki: Please leave a review in the box below and let us know what you thought of it. And before I forget Brightcloud0915 doesn't own KHR but she owns me and her other OCs as well as the plot when we are involved.**

 **Me: Thank you Yuzuki, and I'll see you all for Chapter Ten.**

 **Yuzuki: Bye for now.**


	11. Cute Kids can Lead to Death Wishes

**Before I begin this Chapter I just want to thank LyriaHart for reviewing and giving me the kick in the rear I needed in order to update this FanFiction. Besides that I really liked getting your review and I promise that this story won't be abandoned, it just might take me some time to publish the chapters. So please keep reviewing and I'll try and update as frequently as I can. Now with that being said here's Chapter Ten.**

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Cute Kids can Lead to Death Wishes

A few weeks after the incident at the hospital Tsuna returned to school. Of course I'm not sure anyone really noticed he was gone besides those of us who were his friends. As it was I ended up helping him study a few things, so that he wouldn't fall terribly behind in his studies. In fact after a late study session I headed home, and nearly ran into a Kokuyo student. Something about him freaked me out so after giving him a quick apology I immediately continued on my way.

~The Next Day~

I'd pretty much forgotten about my encounter with the student from Kokuyo, and went about getting ready for school. As I began heading off to get an education a young boy ran past me; slightly clipping me as he did. I blinked in surprise not sure who he was or what he was doing. Not long after he passed me by a couple of men in suits came from the same direction as the boy. One of them stopped me from continuing on.

"Hey, have you seen a young boy around here?" he asked. I played the innocent act.

"May I ask why?" I asked, "Is he your son or something?"

The man smiled but it wasn't genuine, "Yes, so have you seen him?"

"I'm afraid not," I answered, "But if I see him I'll let you know."

"Much appreciated," the man said before joining the others. Then they headed farther along. I knew I'd be in trouble if I were spotted, but I followed them from a safe distance anyway. Finally they came to the house with the chihuahua that Tsuna hated so much. One of the men yelled at the dog when it started barking at him, but the one who appeared to be the boss called him and he immediately continued on. I watched as the little dog went to his dog house and looked inside. Suspicious I opened the gate, and knelt down myself.

"Hey, you okay?" I asked once I'd spotted the young kid. He smiled and nodded. I returned his smile with one of my own.

"I'm glad," I said, "So may I ask your name?"

"I'm Fuuta," he said, "I'm glad I got to meet you Yuzuki-nee."

"I'm glad too Fuuta, but… how do you know my name?" I asked though I received no answer. I was a little shocked that he'd call me that. Still I'd kind of always wanted another brother, and Fuuta was adorable. When I asked him if he had some where to go he said that he'd figure it out. I wasn't really keen on leaving him alone, but I had to get to school.

"Well, Fuuta just be careful," I said, "Maybe we'll see each other again some time."

"I hope so, Yuzuki-nee," and then we parted ways. I managed to get to school with a minute to spare.

~After School~

"So, Tsuna what'll we work on today?" I asked my friend as we headed to his house. Tsuna shrugged, and I mentally sighed. It wasn't long before I saw Tsuna's house, which had become a familiar sight for me the past few days. We were quick to head up to Tsuna's room after slipping off our shoes, but when Tsuna opened the door I was surprised to see Fuuta. Tsuna was even more surprised, especially when Fuuta took his hands and began shaking them.

"I finally get to meet you!" Fuuta said happily, "Nice to meet you, Tsuna-nii!"

"Tsuna-nii?" Tsuna was beyond confused, "Who are you?"

It was Reborn who answered… to a point, "He seemed like he had a favor to ask you."

"A favor?" Tsuna asked, and I was just as curious.

"My name is Fuuta," the young boy said, "The mafia is after me."

"So that's who those guys were," I muttered.

"Hey, Reborn!" Tsuna turned to the hitman assuming Fuuta was joking, "He's serious?!" Tsuna asked when Reborn said nothing to deny it.

"Yep," I said gaining my friend's attention, "I ran into them before school."

After that we ended up sitting around the table in Tsuna's room as Tsuna tried to figure everything out. Fuuta broke the silence by rising to his knees and placing his hands on the table.

"Vongola Jyuudaime, Tsuna-nii, please take me in!" Fuuta pleaded.

"W-What are you saying?" Tsuna asked, "I can't take on the mafia!"

"I know that," Fuuta said which made Tsuna pause, "Because Tsuna-nii's…" here he pulled a large book out of nowhere.

"What is that?" Tsuna asked. On the books cover was a strange symbol, and underneath that the word 'Ranking' was printed. I was just as curious as Tsuna about the book; though mostly because I wanted to know what was in it as well as where the kid pulled it from.

"His combined combat prowess and intelligence are both rank eight hundred seventy-two out of eight hundred seventy-two, the lowest," Fuuta said not missing a beat, "But your 'cannot refuse when asked' rank is number one."

I almost burst out laughing at Tsuna expression, "Well, Tsuna he's got you there."

"What was that?!" my friend asked shocked.

"He's also known ask 'Ranking Fuuta'," Reborn said, "He's an information specialist who has no equal when creating a ranking."

"Another weird one has come to me," Tsuna said offhandedly. Reborn pointed at Fuuta and continued his explanation.

"Fuuta's ranking accuracy is one hundred percent," the young hitman said, "Meaning, if one were to use this ranking book to create a strategy, he could win any battle, and it would be easy to take over the world."

"So that's why those guys were after Fuuta," I said with a low growl, "That's not right."

"Tsuna-nii, help me," Fuuta once again pleaded bringing Tsuna back into the world of the living.

"It's wrong to come to me just because you know I can't refuse," Tsuna said. Fuuta shared a look with Reborn and I had a feeling that my friend was going to take a blow.

"It's not only that," Fuuta said, "Tsuna-nii's also number one when it comes to 'bosses without ambition'. You wouldn't take my ranking book, so I can trust you!"

"That's somehow not very cool," Tsuna said tears running down his face, "But what about Hisoka-san?"

"Yuzuki-nee, is ranked number four in 'willing to help friends'," Fuuta said, "So, I can trust her too."

That seemed to upset Tsuna more, but Reborn chose this moment to speak up, "Would you throw a small, pitiful animal," he held up a picture of himself dressed as a squirrel, "into a field with fearsome carnivores?" the next pictured was of Reborn dressed as a lion.

"Small animal?" Tsuna asked before looking over at Fuuta, "I can see him as one now," And so could I.

"Tsuna-nii," Fuuta pleaded again and Tsuna sighed.

"So, it's decided," Reborn said.

"All right," Tsuna said.

"Yay!," Fuuta cheered, "Arigatou, Tsuna-nii!"

We sat there for a while as I tried to figure out what I should help Tsuna with first, but I couldn't decide; besides Tsuna was still distracted with the fact that he'd seemed to have gained a brother. Truthfully I was still distracted about that as well. After a while I just gave up, and waited for something to happen.

"Since he's here, why don't you get ranked in a few things?" Reborn asked. Tsuna snapped out of his daze.

"Huh, me?" my brunette friend asked.

"All right," Fuuta said. Suddenly the door was opened and Haru walked in.

"That sounds like fun!" she said. I had to admit it did sound interesting at least. After that I sat back and tried to ignore what was going on a little. After all Haru completely ignored me in favor of talking to Tsuna; not that I really minded but it was like I was invisible. Haru was sure that Tsuna and Fuuta were brothers; secret brothers to be precise, but a quick explanation solved that.

~One Explanation Later~

"Oh, you're friends," Haru said.

"Of course he isn't my brother," Tsuna said. Personally I didn't see why Tsuna would be against the idea; of course I wasn't an only child and had three siblings. Once it had been firmly established that Fuuta and Tsuna weren't related Haru was back to wondering what she should have Fuuta 'fortune-tell'.

After a bit she seemed to get an idea of what to do, "Haru's top three charm points!"

"Isn't that just a quiz?" Tsuna asked. I sent him a subtle nod. But Fuuta didn't seem to mind as he stood. That's when things got weird; Fuuta's hair started moving without any wind and stuff started floating. And I wasn't the only one weirded out.

"What's going on?!" Haru asked. Followed swiftly by Tsuna asking Reborn what was going on. I blinked when I saw Tsuna's home tutor dressed in a space suit and floating right along with everything else.

"This is Fuuta's ranking mode," Reborn said. After that Reborn mentioned somethings about theories, which seemed more like fact looking at what was going on. Then Fuuta turned to Haru, and began his ranking.

"Haru-nee's charm points:" he said, "rank three, beautiful eyes."

This put the girl into a frenzy, and made me want to bash my head into the wall.

"Rank two, cute dimples," Fuuta said, and once again Haru was excited, and trying to flirt with Tsuna at the same time.

"And rank one," Fuuta said, "the whirl of your hair."

Tsuna wasn't sure if that would be correct, but it turned out to be right. Though I had to agree with my friend; Haru's use of ranking was strange. The next thing I knew Fuuta was looking at me. I blinked curious as to what was going on.

"Yuzuki-nee's ranked number three hundred out of five hundred twenty three in martial arts," Fuuta said, "She's also ranked number three in having a big secret," I stiffened and swallowed especially when Tsuna and Haru looked at me. My mind went blank, but luckily Lambo came in and distracted the others from me. Well, Reborn wasn't, but then he already knew my secret. After that things got so chaotic that I could already see that homework would not be getting done today. So while everyone was preoccupied I left the room, and headed home.

~A Couple Days Later~

"Did that really happen?" I asked through the laughter, "Did Gokudera's ranking actually get screwed up in that way?"

Tsuna nodded, and I laughed again ignoring the glare the silverette was throwing my way. Yamamoto was laughing with me which didn't help. But my good mood didn't last long when Gokudera spoke up.

"Oi, woman what about your ranking?" he asked, "The ranking kid said you were ranked pretty high in having a secret, right?"

I looked away; laughter instantly dying, "Look I'd tell you if I could… but I can't. Not right now at least," I said, "I'm sorry Tsuna."

"Don't worry about it Yuzuki-san," Yamamoto said. Tsuna nodded.

"Yamamoto's right Yuzuki-san," the brunette said, "But if you ever want to tell us you can."

"Arigatou, Yamamoto, Tsuna," I said, "I promise when the time comes I'll tell you everything. Ah, but could you do me a favor you guys?"

"What is it?" Tsuna asked. I glanced around before answering.

"Just make sure Hibari-san doesn't hear about this," I whispered, "If he ever found out something bad would probably happen."

Tsuna suddenly paled and at first I thought it was because of what I'd said, but when I felt a chill run up my spine I knew exactly what was wrong. Hibari was behind me, and I was certain he'd heard every word. Hibari must have done something because Tsuna and the others immediately left me with the prefect. I swallowed and slowly turned around. Now he'd not only kill me for talking back to him, but he'd also murder me for this secret.

"So he was telling the truth," Hibari said. I started backing up slowly, but he took a step forward for each one I took back. Before I knew it my back was pressed against the wall, and Hibari was blocking all escape.

"A-Ano, Hibari-san class is about to start up again," I said, "I don't want to be late."

The prefect didn't seem too upset, "I've already talked with your teacher herbivore, and you've been excused from class the rest of the day."

I mentally cursed, and tried to think of another way out of this. However, the only one that I came up with was probably… no _was_ suicidal. Unfortunately it was the only way. So after I steeled myself, and made ready to accept the consequences, I lunged forward and landed a solid punch to Hibari's face. Then without waiting for his reaction I took off. And that added a third item to the list of reasons why the Disciplinary Committee Chairman wanted to kill me. As I ran through the halls I tried to find some place where I'd be safe from the prefect, at least for a little while because even if he wasn't following me right now there wasn't a doubt in my mind that he'd be after me soon.

 **Me: So Yuzuki actually punched Hibari… in the face. Yeah… she's gonna die.**

 **Yuzuki: Great, just great. My poor family, friends and other loved ones will have to give me a funeral, and I'm only fourteen. Not to mention I'll be killed three times over.**

 **Me: Yeah not gonna lie, that's exactly what'll happen. Anyways, hope you all enjoyed Chapter Ten, and sorry if it was a little shorter than the other chapters. Anyways with me today is Fuuta, and he'll be saying the disclaimer, right.**

 **Fuuta: Hai, Brightcloud-nee. Brightcloud0915 doesn't own KHR but she owns her OCs.**

 **Yuzuki: And the plot when any of us are involved. So please drop a review and let us know what you think of this story so far.**

 **Me: Sayonara for now minna, and I hope you'll join us for Chapter Eleven… which may turn into a conflict chapter for Yuzuki and Hibari depending on my mood.**

 **Yuzuki: With that being said, I hope to see you all again soon.** **Until then ja ne minna.**


	12. Narrow Escape and Being Kidnapped

Narrow Escape and Being Kidnapped

I was stuck on the school roof. After running from Hibari I'd found myself up here, and decided to hide out until things died down. Only that didn't happen; the rest of the Disciplinary Committee had taken up the search for me. I could see some of them searching the grounds and I could bet that there were some in the school just waiting for me to show my face. The one positive thing that came out of all this was that none had come to the roof, well and that Hibari hadn't found me either. I sighed, and got as comfortable as I could.

It was then that something struck me. Hibari had said that someone had told him about this secret, and there was only one person that I could see telling him; Reborn. The only thing I wasn't sure of was why. What would be the point of telling someone who already wanted to kill me that I was hiding something? Unless, Reborn just wanted to torment me… yeah, that was probably what it was. I sighed and leaned back against the wall; letting my head thump against it softly. It was getting late, but at least I wouldn't have to worry about my parents wondering where I was. Still the longer I sat on the roof the sleepier I got until finally my eyes closed.

~Slightly Later~

It seemed like I'd just closed my eyes when I was woken up by the roof's door opening up. I was immediately on guard. I felt my heart rate increase when Hibari came into my sight. Thankfully he couldn't see me from his position. Besides it seemed like he was paying more attention to the school grounds. Likely, he was waiting to see if I'd bolt. As it was though I didn't plan on moving until I was sure I'd survive doing so. Of course, the later it got; the longer the shadows became and I wasn't planning on heading home in the dark regardless of how safe this town was. I swallowed thickly not daring to move, even as every instinct called for me to flee.

I had to wonder if that was one of the reasons that Hibari called other people herbivores because they chose to run instead of stand and fight, but it's not like I was going to be asking him anytime soon. My legs were starting to fall asleep when Hibari suddenly turned towards my hiding place. My heart started pounding against my chest as I stood shakily; trying to hold back whimpers as the pin-and-needles feeling ran up and down my legs. I wasn't sure if he'd seen me or if something else had caught his attention, but I didn't want to stick around to find out. The problem was he was blocking my escape route. If I went to the right I'd run right into him, and going left would put me in his line of sight which wasn't any better since he'd probably beat me to the door.

Unfortunately the left was the best option and it only got better as I heard someone heading to the right. I steeled myself and inched towards the left; being as silent as I could. I had to wonder if I'd end up having a heart-attack at the suspense I was going through. I almost sighed in relief when I made it around the corner, but I couldn't relax until I was away from school property and safe in my home; well, as safe as I could be. I continued hugging the wall until I made it to the next corner. There I quickly peeked around it, and was pleasantly surprised to find the path clear; still I wasn't going to let my guard down until I was a safe distance from Namimori Middle. I was quick to make my way to the door, and once there I opened it as fast as I dared. However, though I tried to make it as silent as possible the hinges still creaked which no doubt alerted my pursuer to my whereabouts.

I flung the door up, no longer caring for stealth; instead speed was now at the top of my priority list. I rushed down the stairs, and as I did I heard the door open and close along with footsteps. The one thing I was glad for was that I had a slight head start. Unfortunately, I wasn't sure if I could out run Hibari since all the other times he'd been distracted. The first time Kusakabe had been with him, not that he could stop Hibari from doing what he wanted, and he probably hadn't wanted to make a scene. The second time I left Tsuna to face his wrath, which made me the friend of the year. And the third time I might have surprised him by punching him in the face. This time however, he'd been on my trail and the door hadn't bought me much time at all.

I almost faltered when I reached the ground floor; I wanted to let out a shout of triumph, but I knew if I slowed down Hibari would catch me. So, instead of following thoughts I let instinct take over, and in moments (or that's what it seemed like) I was out of the school gates. But even then I didn't slow down, instead I continued running through town. I didn't hear anyone behind me, but that meant nothing to me since all I could hear was the roar of blood in my ears. A darker patch of shadows came to my attention and I immediately changed course and found myself in an alley. Thankfully, it wasn't a dead end, but instead of running straight through I ducked in between two dumpsters and tried to slow my breathing.

As I did I found a couple holes in my stockings, and noticed a bit of dirt coating my shoes. The stockings were easily fixable, but the shoes I wore were for school and if they were worse off than they looked I'd get in big trouble… and that would likely lead to Hibari being even angrier with me than he was, if such a thing were possible. When my heart finally stopped trying to escape my chest and my lungs were no longer trying to hog the oxygen I slowly stood and headed towards the alley's other side. When I stepped out onto the side walk I nearly cried with joy because my house wasn't too far away, and there was still some light out. But despite the relief I felt I was unable to shake the feeling that not only would I have to face Hibari's wrath at some point, but something bad was going to happen and soon.

~The Next Day~

I groaned as I sat up. My legs were sore from the running I'd done the other day, and my head was pounding. Regardless, I couldn't miss school without being severely reprimanded by my parents, the faculty and Hibari… well, the latter would 'bite me to death'. So I got dressed, and took some Aspirin before heading out the door. Before I even realized it I found myself walking by the park, which in itself wasn't too unusual. But strangely the park was completely empty. Usually there were at least two to three people here with their kids, but today it was completely empty. There was a bad feeling hanging in the air which had me on guard. The feeling only increased when I saw Fuuta walk by with a tormented look on his face.

Something made me stop from calling out to him; instead I followed him as he headed towards Namimori Middle. As he got closer I slowed my pace, especially when Hibari came into view. I hid the moment I had the chance but I still continued to watch Fuuta. Not only was he acting strange but he was also in his 'Ranking Mode' watching Tsuna and Hibari. I was so focused on Fuuta that I hadn't realized that Tsuna had started towards the hospital, until he passed me. As it was he didn't notice me or Fuuta, but now I was torn between following Tsuna, or continuing after the young boy. But as much as I was concerned about Tsuna's reason for heading to the hospital I decided following Fuuta was the more pressing issue.

It was soon clear the Fuuta was heading out of town; towards Kokuyo if my sense of direction was right. Finally I couldn't keep silent any longer, and called out to the young boy.

"Fuuta, hey over here!" I shouted. Fuuta jumped a little and looked back at me. A pained look came over his face and he bolted. With no thought other than finding out what was bothering him I took off after the boy. I wasn't sure how long we ran, but Fuuta finally stopped. He was breathing hard, though if I were honest I wasn't really in a much better position.

"H-Hey, why'd you r-run?" I asked through breaths, but received no answer, "Is everything alright?"

Fuuta looked away, and I could tell he was trying not to cry. I made to reach out to him, but he moved away.

"Fuuta, are… are you okay?" I asked, "Look, you can tell me anything. I promise I won't laugh or say anything until you're done talking, okay?"

"I… I can't," Fuuta said; his voice nearly breaking. I sent him an understanding smile. After all I'd pretty much said something similar to Tsuna and the others yesterday.

"I understand, but if you feel like talking later you can come to me," I said. Fuuta smiled, but just as quickly as it appeared it was gone; replaced by an urgent fear.

"Yuzuki-nee look out!" it was the last thing I heard before a sharp blow caught my head, and sent me reeling into unconsciousness.

 **Me: Now things are getting interesting. Now I was going to have a mini fight with Yuzuki and Hibari on the roof, but inspiration took me a different way. Besides I want to build Yuzuki's character a bit more before I actually put her in a situation like that. I was also planning on having Yuzuki try and protect Fuuta from the Kokuyo Gang, but again inspiration beckoned me down a different path so I followed.**

 **Yuzuki: But you know I thought I was a goner on the roof.**

 **Me: Yeah, but I have to keep the story interesting somehow.**

 **Yuzuki: Do you have to do it at my expense? I mean couldn't you easily do it with some other poor soul or something?**

 **Me: Well, I probably could, but you're technically the main character in this story… or at least main OC character so it kinda has to be at your expense. Anyways what do you think will happen next?**

 **Yuzuki: Well, I have a feeling that I know where you're going with this, but I'll let the readers take a guess. And I know the mystery person I bumped into has yet to be revealed, but have patience and all will make sense soon.**

 **Me: Yep, oh and with us today is… Gokudera-kun! So, would you please say the disclaimer for me?**

 **Gokudera: Tch, I don't take orders from you.**

 **Me: I didn't order you, I asked. But if you want an order Tsuna get out here!**

 **Tsuna: H-hai Brightcloud-san.**

 **Me: Would you please ask Gokudera to say the disclaimer?**

 **Tsuna: *nods* Ano, Gokudera-kun would you please say the disclaimer?**

 **Gokudera: Well, if it's for the Tenth. Brightcloud0915 doesn't own KHR, but she owns her OCs and the plot when it involves them.**

 **Me: Arigatou Gokudera-kun. With that I bid you all adieu until Chapter Twelve… yeah that sounds about right. Wow, I can't believe it's only been eleven chapters so far.**

 **Yuzuki: Yeah, but you can't quit now. So, until next time ja ne minna.**

 **Me: Oh, before I go I wanted to let you know that I'll be trying something a little different for the next chapter. At least in the beginning it'll be different. Anyways I'll see you all next time, and until then bye!**


	13. In Italy, then Back to Japan

In Italy, then Back to Japan

~In Italy; Arashi's POV~

Everything was peaceful for the most part. The day had started out fine… well, as fine as it could ever be since I'd gotten sick. But everything had been fine; I hadn't started coughing and I wasn't as pale as I'd been a few days ago. However, around midday while I was sitting watching television with Haruto I felt a sharp pain in my head. Thankfully, it didn't last long and probably didn't hurt as bad as it could. But if that were the case then something had happened to my sister, and that had me worried. I was supposed to protect her, but I was thousands of miles away trying to find a cure for my ailment. And if I were being honest even if I'd been back home I'd probably be of little use to her anyways.

That was really the reason I'd agreed to leave her behind in Namimori. Yuzuki was always protecting me, and I was a minute older. My twin had been keeping me a secret from her friends ever since we'd moved and that wasn't right. I didn't want her to have to protect me anymore; instead I wanted to finally protect her, but that didn't look like it was happening any time soon. So all I could do was worry, and wish for things that didn't seem possible.

~With Yuzuki~

When I came to my hand immediately went to the back of my head. I hissed as my fingers brushed over the lump that had formed. I could feel a headache coming on, but I shoved it away as best as I could and focused on observing my surroundings. I couldn't see much, as it was dark, but what I could sent a slight shiver up my spine. Cautiously I stood, wincing as my head throbbed in protest. I wondered how long I'd been out as I moved around the strange room I was in; hugging the wall. Something caught my attention as I continued moving on. There was a darker space that at first glance could have been mistaken for a part of the wall, but it was really an empty doorway; likely my ticket out of this place. I was relieved to have found this escape route, but as I went to step through I found myself falling.

I let loose a scream as my body flipped around uncontrollably. After a while I paled when I saw the water rising up to meet me. I'd been falling for ages, which meant I'd been up pretty high and in turn that meant I'd essentially be hitting concrete over water. Regardless I took a deep breath just moments before I collided with the surface. Surprisingly it didn't kill me, or hurt quite as much as I'd thought it would. Still I couldn't afford to stay under and risk drowning so I began swimming upwards. My head broke the water's surface and I breathed in deeply. Unfortunately before I could get comfortable something latched around my leg and pulled me back under.

My heart pounded against my chest as I struggled desperately to get away from whatever gripped my leg. But my fighting was slowly proving to be in vain. I clawed at the water desperately trying to break through the surface so I could at least get more oxygen, but no matter how hard I tried the thing wrapped around my leg wouldn't let me rise any higher. My lungs were burning; crying out for air, and subconsciously I found my hands flying over my mouth in a last-ditch effort to keep the air I did have from escaping. Finally my body gave out and I found myself choking on water. And then suddenly the water was gone. It took me a moment to come to that conclusion but once I did I'd never been happier to breath in musty air.

After the novelty of not drowning faded I looked around from my position on the floor. This meant that I'd still fallen, but only to the floor in the next room. I swallowed as I tried to figure out was had just happened. Was my head injury responsible, or was it something else? Despite the fact that I wanted to figure this mystery out I wasn't willing to stay in this place; wherever it was. But just as I pushed myself to my feet I heard a creaking sound; it echoed all around me making it impossible to find the source and I swallowed thickly. Then a gloved hand was wrapped around my mouth muffling the scream that had burst forth at the touch.

"Oya, oya is that anyway to greet someone?" a male voice asked. I squirmed out of the guy's grasp, and spun around. My heart was pounding and my breath came out sharp and fast. But my gaze hardened as I spoke.

"Perhaps screaming isn't the best way to make someone's acquaintance, but neither is kidnapping," I growled. The boy, for he was a boy (only a year older than me at least), sent me an amused look. Still something about him didn't seem quite right so I took in his appearance. He was taller than me, which wasn't hard to pull off, and his skin leaned towards the pale side. His right eye was covered by his blue bangs while the left was exposed; it was blue which matched his hair. His hair was styled similar to, of all things, a pineapple. But I figured that now wasn't the best time to mention that fact to him aloud.

"Now then," the boy spoke, "what brought you so close to this place?"

For a moment I was confused; I had no idea where we were. However, it suddenly dawned on me. I was in the amusement park; the very old, very abandoned Kokuyo Amusement park. At least that's what seemed the likeliest since I'd been fairly close to the place once Fuuta had stopped running.

"I was following a young boy," I answered. Something about his look said that he was suspicious of my answer or of my motives for following the boy.

"And why did you do that?" he asked smoothly. I returned his gaze evenly before I replied.

"I was worried about him," I said, "He looked like something was bothering him. I managed to catch up with him around here, but he refused to say anything about what might have been the problem."

The boy hummed, and I got a sick feeling in my stomach. I swallowed thickly trying to get rid of the acid taste that had infected my mouth, which only intensified when his right eye was revealed. The color of it would have been strange enough, a brilliant red that seemed to glow, but there was a weird symbol that rested in the crimson depths of that very eye. The boy chuckled at my reaction; smirking as I sent him a glare. He paid no attention to that; instead his eyes were fixed on something behind me.

"You wouldn't happen to mean that boy would you?" the blue haired boy asked. I started before turning to look behind me. Fuuta was indeed standing there, but something seemed off about him. He didn't seem as… alive as he had earlier.

"Yeah, that's him," I answered without thinking, "Well, if you don't mind I'll be taking my leave and taking him with me."

"Kufufu, I'm sorry to tell you, but neither of you are going anywhere," the heterochromatic boy said. I turned back to him and opened my mouth to protest, but a stinging sensation cut me off. I looked behind me to see Fuuta standing there tears running down his face again. It didn't take me long to figure out why; I'd literally been stabbed in the back and Fuuta had been the one to do it. Yet, at the same time he was innocent. I swallowed, and sent the young blond a look that said I didn't blame him for anything before I pitched forward. I braced myself for the impact of the floor, but just before I hit the ground the blue haired boy caught me smirking all the while.

"Pleasant dreams," he whispered. I tried to send him a glare, but my eyes were already slipping shut. The last thought I had before I slipped under the blanket of unconsciousness was if this was what dying felt like.

~With Arashi~

I flinched when I felt a sharp sting to my back, and found myself gazing in the direction of home. Something bad was happening to my sister. I ground my teeth in frustration.

 _'Please… be okay Yuzuki. I promise once I get taken care of that I'll protect you,'_ I said silently.

 **Me: Well not too much happened this chapter, but still there was some progress.**

 **Yuzuki: Why'd I get stabbed?**

 **Me: All will be revealed in due time, same as with the person you bumped into all those chapters ago.**

 **Yuzuki: I almost thought you'd forgotten about that.**

 **Me: Nope, but it has been quite some time since I've thought about that. With me today is Yamamoto-san. So, Yamamoto-san would you please say the disclaimer for today?**

 **Yamamoto: Sounds like fun. CloudSkylark18 doesn't own KHR but she does own this story idea and her OCs.**

 **Me: Thanks Yamamoto-san. In any case please leave a review in the box below and let me know what you thought of this chapter. Until next time ja ne.**


	14. An Ill Omen

An Ill Omen

I don't know how long I was out, but when I came to I once again found myself in a dark and musty room. My head hurt as did my back, though as I shifted I could feel something chafing against my skin. I sat up as fast as I dared, lifted my top up and then looked down. I blinked and doubled-checked, but there really were bandages wrapped around my waist. Once I'd confirmed that I wasn't going to bleed out I observed my surroundings better. There appeared to be a door on the far side of the room, but as I was injured I didn't plan on getting up and checking. I couldn't see any other way to get in or out, not even windows. Then something hit me.

 _'I was stabbed… so how am I alive? And why would that psycho keep me alive?'_ I asked myself, _'But more importantly what did he do to Fuuta, and can it be undone?'_

With those thoughts in mind I tried to think of a way to get out of this place. I glanced around once more to be sure that I hadn't missed anything in my first sweep, but once again only the possible doorway stood out. I groaned in frustration, and pushed myself up wincing as the bandages rubbed against my wounds. I took a step forward and hissed at the tugging I felt coming from my back. But I kept going; I didn't want to be here any longer than I had to regardless if I was injured or not. As I inched closer to the door I made a plan, or as much of one as I could since I wasn't really all that sure of the situation I was in. Basically the plan involved me getting out of this room, finding Fuuta and getting out of this place without being caught.

When I finally stood in front of the door I reached out for the knob, but paused when I heard something on the other side. I pressed my ear to the door, and heard the sound of something hitting the floor. The moan that followed led me to believe that a person had been the cause of the sound. Then I heard the voices.

"Hello, thanks for coming," the first was the same boy who'd somehow made Fuuta stab me. The second caught me by surprise.

"I've been looking for you for quite some time," Hibari's voice drifted into the room I was in, "Are you behind this little prank?"

The other boy hummed before replying, "Something like that. And I'm also the new order in your town," I almost laughed at the last part, but something in his voice stopped me. It was disconcerting, but Hibari didn't seem dissuaded.

"You must be talking in your sleep," Hibari said, "Namimori does not need two sources of discipline."

"I agree completely," the blue haired boy said and I could just picture him smirking, "I will become the new order, so you are unnecessary."

For a moment I wondered if this stranger that had, had me attacked knew who he was talking to. I'd seen Hibari beat up plenty of students, and adults that threatened his precious peace. But then I also had to remember the strange fall I'd taken, and the fact that this boy had something to do with Fuuta's unusual behavior.

"I can't have that," Hibari's voice brought me back to the present, "I'll bite you to death right here. So you want to die while sitting?"

Most people would have already run by this point if not sooner myself included; I mean I may have a death wish (a sub-conscious one mind you), but I wasn't crazy. However, this stranger merely laughed it off before speaking.

"You certainly are funny," he said, "There's no need to stand; that's why I'm sitting."

"I'm going to stop talking to you," I tried to picture Hibari's face when he spoke, and the only thing that came to mind was annoyed. But since he always seemed annoyed it wasn't all that hard to picture.

"Do as you wish," the heterochromatic boy said, "But unless you take the opportunity now, you'll never speak again."

I wondered if the stranger actually wanted to die because I figured none of this would sit well with the chairman of the Disciplinary Committee. But something in his voice seemed confident… or rather like he'd done it before, and that had me wondering for the first time since I moved to Namimori if Hibari Kyoya might just lose.

"Is something that matter?" I snapped back to attention when I heard the stranger speak, "You look a little sick," I wondered what he meant by that because as far as I knew Hibari Kyoya did not get sick.

"Shut up," Hibari shot back but his voice seemed to lack the bite it'd had earlier.

"You must not have realized who you had picked a fight with," the other boy said, "I was surprised, too. To think, a first-rate hitman such as Trident Shamal was over here."

"What are you talking about?" Hibari asked. I racked my brain trying to think of where I'd heard the name Shamal before, and then it hit me. He was the weirdo doctor that only treated women; the guy I'd give a black eye to when he tried to hit on me (and I'd been angry at him for not helping Tsuna as well).

"His specialty is using mosquitoes which have various untreatable sicknesses to kill. Trident Mosquitoes," the blue haired boy said. I heard what might have qualified as a gasp come from Hibari, which made me wonder if he'd been bitten by one of these mosquitoes.

"Now, get a hold of yourself," the heterochromatic boy said, "I'm over here. The thing the Trident Mosquito infected you with is called Sakura-kura. It's a sickness that causes the victim to become unsteady when around sakura. I rushed to get this ready for you, these beautiful sakura."

But though he said there were sakura in the other room I couldn't smell anything. Something about the whole thing seemed strange, so I finally tried to open the door. It was locked, but I hadn't really expected anything else. With my only method of escape having come up a dead end I was forced to press my ear up against the door and listen again. As it was I didn't hear anything for a few minutes, but when I did finally hear something it was the sound of blows. At first I assumed it was Hibari finally putting the stranger in his place, but then the other spoke.

"You look like you want to ask me how I knew you'd been infected with Sakura-kura, when you yourself did not," I felt my eyes grow wide; Hibari was the one taking the beating while the other was just fine, "I wonder why? Hm? You must be thinking you could beat me if the sakura weren't here. That is a misunderstanding. I've seen many men as strong as you. And I've sent many of them to a place similar to Hell," I felt a shiver run up my spine and for the first time since I'd met Hibari I was actually concerned for his well-being, "Now, let's continue."

After that all I heard were blows. I tried to drown out the sounds, but it was impossible. All I could do was sink to the ground and lean against the door. I began to wonder if there would even be a way of getting out of this place. After all if Hibari couldn't beat the guy I couldn't think of any who could. After a while the blows stopped, and I heard footsteps leaving the room. With nothing to do, and no way out I shakily stood and walked over to the bed I'd woken up on. I laid back down and stared at the ceiling.

 _'At least you're safe, Arashi,'_ and then I drifted off.

~In Italy with Arashi~

I sat up quickly from where I lay on the couch in our hotel. The fear was still swirling around in my mind mixed in with a little relief. Something was totally wrong with Yuzuki. Either she was being hurt or someone she cared about was being hurt. I stood and headed to the window that faced the direction of home.

 _'Yuzuki… ganbare, I promise some day I'll be able to help you,'_ I closed my eyes and hoped that somehow my feelings would reach my sister.

 **Me: I think that's a good place to end the chapter. What do you think Yuzuki?**

 **Yuzuki: Not bad, though it does make this chapter a little shorter than most.**

 **Me: True, but I can always try and increase the length of the next chapter. After all I think that's where things will pick up again.**

 **Yuzuki: Well, today it's just me and Brightcloud here so I'll say the disclaimer this time. Brightcloud0915 doesn't own KHR or the characters therein. She does however own the plot of this story plus me and her other OCs.**

 **Me: Thank you Yuzuki, and with that being said please leave a review in the box below, and if you have and questions for me feel free to PM and I will do my best to answer them. See you all next time, bye.**

 **Yuzuki: Ja ne.**


	15. Bluffing and a Cry for Help

Bluffing and a Cry for Help

Utter boredom was the one thing that could describe how I felt. I'd been awoken from my impromptu nap when I'd heard the sound of a bowling ball knocking down pins, or whatever might qualify as pins in this run-down place. After that I found that I couldn't go back to sleep. Instead my thoughts bounced around my head quite randomly. First and foremost of those jumbled wonderings was if I was even going to get out of this place. Then I wondered if anyone had missed me at school. And finally I tried to think of what might have happened to Fuuta and Hibari.

When I couldn't bear to think about any of that anymore I started pacing around the room. An hour or two must have passed before something caught my attention. Curious I went back to the door, and pressed my ear against it once more. I heard what appeared to be footsteps entering the adjacent room. Then the boy who'd beaten Hibari spoke.

"Is that you, Chikusa?" he let out what seemed like a sound of concern which was followed by something akin to a 'thud'. I figured that this 'Chikusa' person must have fallen. Then the heterochromatic boy spoke again.

"Oh, did we get a 'hit'?" he asked. When no answer was forth-coming I figured that Chikusa was probably unconscious and couldn't answer. I was also curious and nervous about this 'hit' that the other boy had mentioned. Then another voice chimed in.

"Is Kaki-pi here?" the voice, distinctly male, asked, "Kaki-pi, you look lame! You look tattered and barbequed," the next thing he said had my stomach turning and my fear reaching new levels, "He's cooked rare and looks delicious."

I shuddered, and fought against the urge to be sick, especially when the blue haired boy spoke again.

"Kanna Ken," his voice was filled with authority, "he's just unconscious. There's no way Chikusa would return empty-handed without information on the Vongola. Let's wait until he wakes up."

When I heard the word 'Vongola' I immediately began trying to place where I had heard it before. For a moment nothing was forth-coming, but then I remembered when Dino had visited. He'd called Tsuna the head of the Vongola. The moment my brain made the connection I couldn't help but let out a gasp. I heard something shift in the other room, and swallowed hoping that no one had heard me. When I heard nothing I breathed a quiet sigh of relief, but my relief didn't last long.

"Ken, take Chikusa somewhere he can rest," the heterochromatic boy said, "I need to have a word with our other guest."

My throat constricted as I heard footsteps leaving the room as well as something, probably Chikusa, being dragged along. My heart began beating erratically as another set of footsteps began making their way towards my room. Every step sounded louder than the one before until they appeared deafening to me. Each passing moment allowed my fear to draw closer to its peak until I was enveloped in the dark feeling. My breath hitched a bit as I heard the click of a lock, and I immediately scrambled away from the door as it began to open. Once the door was out of the way there was nothing to protect me from the person standing in the doorway.

"Kufufu, so you are awake after all," the boy said, "I was hoping you would be. After all we didn't get to speak much earlier."

I bit back the retort that had been sitting on the tip of my tongue as I remembered what this boy had done to Fuuta and Hibari. Instead I eyed him warily, and decided to remain silent.

"Oya, there's no need to be so rude," the boy said looking me square in the eyes. Once again I deigned not to reply. The boy sighed before stepping farther into the room, and then shutting the door behind him. My heart rate rocketed as he came even closer, and I couldn't help but move back as far as I could. Unfortunately that wasn't very far at all. The boy smirked before kneeling down in front of me.

"W-what do you want from me?" I asked mentally cursing myself for both speaking and stuttering. The boy's smirk seemed to get bigger which had a shiver running up my spine.

"There's no need to be so alarmed," he said in a placating fashion, "I just want some information," he paused for a moment and I was reminded of a predator singling out the weak link in the herd, "Like, how you know of the Vongola and your connection to them."

"I-I don't know what you mean," I said feigning confusion and ignorance as best I could. However, from the way the boy's eyes narrowed ever so slightly I knew I didn't have him fooled. I was also reminded once again of just how dangerous this boy could be; no matter how kind or understanding his voice had sounded just moments ago he was cold and calculating, and he'd already hurt someone.

"I recommend that you don't lie to me," the boy said the warning clear in his mismatched eyes, "The consequences of doing so are very grave."

"I have nothing to say to you," I said. The boy hummed, but it was not something that reassured me. In fact it only made me more nervous, especially when the door was opened by Fuuta. I looked between the two confused.

"If that's how you feel then I suppose any action I take against this boy won't bother you in the slightest," the heterochromatic boy looked at me where I sat frozen. He drew back his hand and my eyes went wide. With no conscious thought I leapt forward.

"No!" the word left my lips before I could stop it. My hands were wrapped around my captor's wrist in hopes of preventing the blow from falling. My eyes held a pleading look in them, which had the boy lowering his arm. Despite that I refused to release his arm fearful that he might try and strike Fuuta if I wasn't careful.

"Oya, you're pretty noisy for someone who has nothing to say," the heterochromatic boy said. I swallowed before replying.

"He's only a child," I said, "There's no reason to hurt him, especially since I only met him earlier today. I know nothing of this 'Vongola'. If I did I'd tell you," the lie slipped past my lips easily. If I hadn't known what I'd said was utter rubbish I'd have believed every word myself. The boy sent me a thoughtful look, but allowed Fuuta to leave. I showed nothing but indifference on the outside, while inside I allowed the relief to flood my body. Before I knew it the boy was at the door looking over his shoulder at me. I flinched a little at the iciness in his gaze, but the message was clear; he'd let me off the hook for now, but if he found out I was lying he wouldn't hesitate to do me or worse Fuuta harm. Then he was gone leaving me alone once more.

My head fell back against the wall with a soft 'thunk'. I could feel tears trying to make their presence known, but I pushed them away. Crying here would solve nothing, and if any of my captors saw tears it'd be as good as telling them they'd won.

 _'Someone please,'_ I thought as I pulled my knees to my chest and allowed my head to rest on them, _'help us.'_

 **Me: Well, longer than last time I think. Anyways it still seems shorter than some others, but this is really going to help the story later I'm sure. Yuzuki's not here today but in her place is Arashi. So Arashi-kun would you please say the disclaimer for me.**

 **Arashi: Of course Cloud. CloudSkylark18 doesn't own KHR, the plot, or the characters therein.**

 **Me: If I did I'd be rich, and probably wouldn't have much use for writing fanfictions.**

 **Arashi: She does however; own the plot of this story, and her OCs of which I am included.**

 **Me: Thanks Arashi that was a big help. With that being said please leave a review in the box below, and let me know what you thought of this chapter. I'll see you all next time for Chapter Fifteen. Until then sayonara.**

 **Arashi: Ja ne minna!**


	16. A Dangerous Battle Begins

A Dangerous Battle Begins

I was startled out of my sleep the next day by a loud crash. My heart pounding, I quickly sat up and glanced around. Once I'd confirmed that the building wasn't collapsing in on me I slowly relaxed. But that didn't last long as I heard more noise. It sounded distant to a point, but it was obviously somewhere in Kokuyo Land and fairly close for me to be able to hear it. The sounds continued for a while, but went quiet all of a sudden. The silence lasted for a few moments before it was torn apart by a scream. I jumped, but whoever had done the screaming didn't sound familiar.

I sat in that room for a while anxious about what might be occurring outside or inside for that matter. I was fairly concerned about the fact that my captor hadn't been in to see me. I mean I was glad and all since I didn't have to deal with him, but that only made me wonder what he was doing that was keeping him occupied. Unfortunately he didn't stay away for long. I was immediately on guard when I heard the footsteps; tensing up as the door was gradually opened revealing my captor in all his glory.

"Good you're awake," he said, "I'm about to greet some guests and I think you should be present when I do."

"And if I refuse to come with you?" I asked, though I had a feeling I knew the answer.

"Then I suppose you really aren't as concerned with that boy's safety as you've been making out," his heterochromatic eyes dared me to refuse, but I couldn't. So instead I stood reluctantly and with a glare that should have made my captor rethink his life choices. But he wasn't fazed in the least; if anything he found my helpless anger to be amusing. He led me out of the room I'd been housed in, and through the one beyond it. As we passed through I happened to glance down and to the side, and saw what I was sure was dried blood. I swallowed, but kept myself from running on ahead. From there we headed to the third floor, and into a room that appeared to be some sort of theater.

 _'Who are these guests he's supposed to be greeting, and why does he want me with him when he does?'_ my mind was filled with so many thoughts, but that was the chief among them. However, I doubted that I'd be getting an answer from my escort should I even try asking.

"Aren't you going to sit down?" the blue haired boy asked. I shook my head.

"I'd rather stand thank you," I growled. The boy shrugged, but his face bore an amused expression; a sight that I'd already grown tired of seeing. Since I had nothing to say to my captor we waited in silence for a while, but that was broken by the door to the room being opened. My expression twisted into a surprised one when I saw Tsuna standing in the doorway, though I quickly schooled my expression. Naturally he was also surprised to see me, but he was also shocked to see my captor for some reason. For a moment I thought my friend had come here alone, and that had me worried for his safety, but then I saw Bianchi and Reborn and my fear dissipated though not by much.

"I'm glad we could meet again," my captor suddenly said. I followed his gaze and found it firmly locked on Tsuna, which put me back on edge once more. Bianchi was on guard as well from the way she was standing. For a moment Tsuna seemed confused, but that didn't last long.

"You're…" my friend trailed off for a minute as though he was remembering something, "Is this where you're being held? This is the Kokuyo student I met earlier; he's being held here!"

I opened my mouth to say something, but I was beaten to the punch by my captor.

"Please take your time," the heterochromatic boy said, "We're about to start a long relationship together, Vongola Jyuudaime."

The way he said that had shivers dancing up and down my spine. Tsuna looked at him with wide eyes.

"How do you know I'm Vongola?" Tsuna asked, "And why's Yuzuki here?"

My captor sent me a sidelong glance, and I swallowed. My bluff had finally been called and by Tsuna no less; not that I could blame him though since he didn't know of my situation. But looking at the mismatched eyes of the boy next to me assured me that he'd already suspected as much; not that it made me feel any better, but at least the charade was over now.

"Well, that's because," I started, "he's behind the whole thing. And I followed Fuuta here."

"Then that means that he's…" Bianchi trailed off. The boy laughed.

"That's right. I am the real Rokudo Mukuro," he said. The name meant nothing to me, but from Tsuna's reaction it clearly meant something to him. I had to wonder just how much I'd missed by being here for the past day… or most of the past day at least. Suddenly the door closed behind Tsuna and the others. I set my teeth when I saw who it was. The others all glanced behind them startled, but then they seemed relieved. Before I could say anything to them; warn them that something was wrong about him being here Tsuna headed toward the door.

"Fuuta," Tsuna called out as his feet brought him closer to his friend, "Don't startle me!"

"He seems safe," Bianchi said a relieved note in her voice. Again I was interrupted by Tsuna.

"I've been looking for you since back then," my brunet friend said. Reborn and I seemed to be the only ones who noticed that Mukuro seemed perfectly fine with us being reunited with Fuuta. Bianchi moved to stand in front of Fuuta protectively.

"It's dangerous," she said, "so stay back. Fu-"

For a moment I wondered why Bianchi had paused, but a sudden gleam came from Fuuta's hand. My breath caught in my throat when I realized he was holding something very sharp. I had to wonder if he'd stabbed me with the exact same thing he was holding now.

"Fuuta?" Bianchi asked. However, all she received in reply was a stab to the gut. Fuuta had the same bearing about him now as he'd had when he'd stabbed me. I glanced over at Mukuro with clenched teeth and a blood-freezing glare. He simply looked over at me with and smirked. I twisted sharply as I made to strike him, but that only succeeded in causing me pain. I dropped to my knees sucking in a breath as the pain rolled over me. I mentally cursed when I realized I'd be no help to Tsuna this time around. I was so distracted that I only realized things had escalated when I saw Tsuna rushing towards Mukuro with a whip in hand; a whip that looked similar to Dino's which had me assuming that it had belonged to the other at one point.

"Tsuna-san behind you!" I called out when I saw Fuuta following him. My friend glanced behind and saw the young boy.

"Don't follow me, Fuuta!" he shouted, but that didn't deter Fuuta. As Tsuna drew closer he threw his arm forward in an attempt to use the weapon in his hand. Unfortunately either he was just as clumsy as Dino or Dino's uselessness (without his men at least) had somehow transferred to the whip because Tsuna only managed to hit himself in the face and tangle his legs. He cried out in pain and held a hand over his eye. Mukuro had the gall to laugh, and I let out a low growl which was promptly ignored.

"You're always surprising me," the blue haired boy said, "Look behind you. It's dangerous."

It was the truth since Fuuta had been tangled up in the whip as well. The look on the young boy's face broke my heart, and now more than ever I wished I could do something to boy behind this all. The next thing I knew, Tsuna had knocked away Fuuta's weapon, which looking closer allowed me to tell exactly what it was; a trident.

"Stop it, Fuuta!" Tsuna yelled. Unfortunately his plea fell on deaf ears, though Fuuta wasn't doing it on purpose. Tsuna seemed to realize something which distracted him briefly. However it was just that brief moment that Fuuta needed in order to grab his weapon. He held it over his head and made to descend on Tsuna. I opened my mouth to cry out to him; beg him to stop but Tsuna beat me to it.

"You didn't do anything wrong," Tsuna said making Fuuta freeze, "You didn't do anything wrong at all. We're all your allies, Fuuta, so don't worry, and come home."

Mukuro started a bit, and I realized he hadn't expected this of Tsuna. But I didn't dwell on him instead I looked back to Fuuta who was clutching his head and wincing. However, I couldn't help but hear what my captor said.

"To break the mind control, he's said the phrase they want to hear the most," he was obviously talking to himself but it was still a relief to know that Fuuta was now okay.

"Tsuna… nii," was all Fuuta managed to say before he fell to the ground. Immediately I was on my feet ignoring the pain in order to reach the boy.

"Fuuta!" Tsuna's voice was filled with worry, "Hey!"

I reached them just as Mukuro spoke up, "It seems like he crashed because of what you said."

"No! Fuuta!" Tsuna cried.

"Hold on a minute," I said. I took Fuuta's hand and checked for a pulse; it was strong and steady. His breathing was that of one asleep.

"He's fine, Tsuna-san just tired," I said reassuringly, "though I'm sure that guy knows more about the reason why than I do," I looked over at Mukuro as I spoke.

"Kufufu, well that would be because he hasn't really slept in the past ten days," Mukuro said, "He was a troublesome boy from the start. We came to Japan to find Vongola Jyuudaime. We didn't know where to look, specifically. So we had Fuuta-kun, who had met you, come to us," I could feel my hands curl into fists and begins to shake as he continued, "He's followed the omertà and kept quiet," I had no idea what this 'omertà' was but Tsuna obviously knew, "Even under my mind control, he never said anything about the Vongola. He's quite impressive."

"So without a choice, you used Namimori's combat prowess ranking, which had already been created, to draw out the Vongola Family," Reborn said. I was confused myself, but obviously this ranking had been made by Fuuta and so had to be one hundred percent accurate.

"My plan worked perfectly, even with the one little snag," he looked over at me, "We didn't expect one of the number sevens to come to us, though I do wonder who that Arashi is?"

"Don't you ever speak his name again!" I shouted, "You don't have that right, and you never will!"

"Yuzuki-san," I heard Tsuna's quiet voice. Mukuro didn't seemed fazed by my outburst in the least. It was clear that he didn't take me seriously.

"Well, no matter," the blue haired boy said, "After all, Vongola Jyuudaime is right here."

"You did this to Fuuta, who was innocent," Tsuna said lowly, "And Yuzuki who was just worried about him. Rokudo Mukuro! What do you think people are?!"

"They are…" he said slowly, "toys."

"Don't screw around!" Tsuna shouted startling me. I'd never heard my friend so upset, though I didn't blame him. In fact being honest if I wasn't injured like I was I'd have joined him in charging Mukuro. As Tsuna drew closer Mukuro slowly stood.

"I never thought that I would have to fight directly," he said. Something about the way he tilted his head had me on edge. It felt like some sort of oppressive presence was in the room with us, and it originated from Mukuro. He leapt down from the stage, and crossed paths with Tsuna. However, it was only my friend who came out injured.

"That hurt!" Tsuna let out a pained cry. The problem was I hadn't seen his opponent strike him at all.

"Is something the matter?" Mukuro asked glancing at my friend. I shivered, as I recalled Hibari being beaten on the other side of the door of the room I'd been trapped in earlier.

"What happened?" Tsuna asked as he sat on the ground supporting himself with his right hand.

"He struck as the two of you crossed paths," Reborn said. It seemed impossible, but it was the only explanation that made any sense, though not much.

"Exactly what I would expect from an Arcobaleno," Mukuro said as he fit the trident onto the staff he carried, "That's exactly right."

I started when I saw the flame dancing over his eye. It reminded me of the flame that burned over Tsuna's head whenever Reborn shot him. Though Mukuro's seemed gentler something about it seemed much more dangerous.

"The Dying Will Flame in his eye…" Tsuna trailed off.

"So you can see it," Mukuro murmured, "The power is the 'Fourth Path' a combat skill learned from the Path of Asura."

"Path of Asura?" Tsuna asked in confusion, "Skill?"

"Are you familiar with 'Transmigration through the Six Worlds'?" Mukuro asked. It was Reborn who answered.

"When people die, they are reborn as a demon, as a hungry ghost, a beast, an asura, a human or a deva," I had to wonder what the point of my captor's question had been. The answer wasn't long in coming.

"I have the memory of going to all six realms," Mukuro said, "I've attained six combat skills from the six underworlds."

"What are you talking about?" Tsuna asked.

 _'Did one of these…_ skills _help him beat Hibari? If so, then he only won through trickery… meaning Hibari might have been able to beat him if he didn't have these skills and we wouldn't be in the mess we're in now,'_ I thought. Mukuro glanced over at me as though he guessed my thoughts; in his eyes I saw the certainty that he'd be the victor at the end of this. But I refused to let that happen.

"If that's true, you're quite the monster," Reborn's voice snapped me away from my thoughts.

"I don't want to hear it from you," Mukuro said, "a cursed infant, an Arcobaleno."

I had no idea what he was talking about, and from the look of things neither did Tsuna. But neither one of us could dwell on that for long anyways as Mukuro spoke up.

"Now let me show you my next skill," I was instantly on guard though I don't know what it was I was preparing for, "Here I come," Mukuro said tapping the end of his trident on the ground. Suddenly a light shown up from the floor and the whole building began to shake. My heart was pounding erratically in my chest, but something about this felt familiar. As it was I couldn't put my finger on it.

"No! The building is…" Tsuna's voice full of fear called my attention to him, "Fuuta! Yuzuki!"

I pulled Fuuta towards me as we began to fall. Then something burst into my head.

 _'Fall… I fell before here, when I first woke up. I fell into water, but then there was no water. Was that… and this just one of Mukuro's tricks?'_ I asked myself. I closed my eyes and suddenly the sensation of falling was gone. I opened them and found myself dropping through the floor with Fuuta once more.

 _'It's all a trick… an illusion! Very realistic, but still nothing more than an illusion. If I don't accept it as reality… would it go away?'_ I thought. Before I could test my theory Reborn had slugged Tsuna a good one and brought him back to reality, which by extension had Mukuro release everyone else from it as well.

"Why did you do that, Reborn?!" Tsuna asked clutching his cheek before looking around to find the room and the building perfectly intact.

"What you saw was an illusion," Reborn said.

"An illusion?" Tsuna asked. I nodded.

"That's right Tsuna, an illusion," I spoke up, "I realized it when I closed my eyes. The sensation of falling disappeared, so it was clear that what we'd been seeing wasn't real. Besides I was caught in one earlier, when I first woke up here."

"You saw through it. Well done, though," Mukuro looked at me here, "I didn't expect you to figure it out too," I bristled a bit but he continued undeterred, "Yes, the First Path, the Path of Demons*, is a skill that destroys the spirit with an endless nightmare."

Tsuna began shaking when he heard that, though honestly I wasn't much better even if I wasn't showing it physically.

"However, I'm beginning to see your relationship after observing you," Mukuro directed this to Tsuna and Reborn, "The Arcobaleno is here to monitor the Vongola."

"That's not true," Reborn said, "I'm Tsuna's at-home tutor."

"Kufufu, I see. That's very unique," Mukuro said, "But is the teacher not going to attack? I don't mind taking you both on at the same time."

I had to wonder why Reborn wasn't fighting. True he'd never been real involved in the past, but he'd always been around to help should the need arise.

"Because that's the law," Reborn said.

"So it's the law? What a very proper, mafia-esque response," Mukuro said.

"And I don't need to do a thing. My student will defeat you," Reborn said. I blinked a bit, this was the first time I'd ever really heard some form of praise come from Reborn. It definitely didn't seem normal.

"Hey, Reborn!" it was clear that Tsuna was a little upset with this. After all Mukuro and his gang weren't anything like what we'd dealt with in the past.

"What a beautiful, trusting relationship. How amusing," Mukuro said, "Very well then."

There was an ugly glow that lit up the room for a moment, but as it faded snakes dropped out of the sky. For a moment I thought it was another illusion and closed my eyes to banish it. But one of the snakes slithered over my hand to join it's brethren and that put an end to my theory. Tsuna thought so too until Mukuro spoke up.

"Those are real poisonous snakes," he said. Tsuna paled, and seemed to look a bit sick; at least from my perspective.

"That's horrible," my friend said.

"The Third Path, Path of Beasts. The skill to summon animals that will kill my enemy," Mukuro said, "Your student is in trouble. Won't you do anything?" he addressed his question to Reborn. I grit my teeth, and glared. If Reborn couldn't help Tsuna then injured or not I'd take up the responsibility. However, before I could stand Reborn said something that made me pause.

"Mukuro, don't be so certain of yourself," he said just as some of the snakes lunged at Tsuna, "I'm the best at-home tutor."

The moment that was said something flew at Mukuro. Unfortunately, he heard it and deflected it nearly hitting me in the process. It was a tonfa, which could only mean Hibari was close by and that made me feel both glad and scared at the same time. Glad because we now had another person to help us, but scared because I was certain he was still furious with me.

"Jyuudaime!" a voice, Gokudera's, broke through my tangled thoughts, "Please get down!"

Tsuna started and looked up letting out a cry as he did. It wasn't hard to see why though since there was dynamite flying through the air above my brunet friend. Thankfully the bombs didn't cause Tsuna any harm and the snakes were flung away. As the smoke cleared all eyes were one the door where Gokudera stood held up by Hibari who looked in no better shape than the silverette, though it was hard to tell who had it worse.

 _'So this is what Mukuro did to Hibari… I wouldn't wish that on anybody,'_ I thought.

"Sorry we're late," Gokudera said grimacing as he did.

"Hibari-san! Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna called out clearly relieved that they were both still alive, "You're both…"

Reborn cut Tsuna off, "Do you understand now? I didn't raise only Tsuna."

Mukuro was clearly upset by this turn of events. Gokudera had a grin on his face which disappeared when Hibari spoke.

"I've paid you back now," the prefect said promptly shrugging the wounded Gokudera off and onto the floor. Thankfully Hibari hadn't seen me yet so I was safe for now. Tsuna seemed shocked by Hibari's actions, but there wasn't much to be surprised about.

"My, my, there's a lot of spectators today," Mukuro said, "What is Chikusa doing?"

"The glasses guy and the animal guy are taking a nap together down below," Gokudera answered. I was beyond confused, but I figured everything would be explained to me later… hopefully.

"I see," came Mukuro's cool reply.

"Way to go, Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna praised his friend, but that only seemed to drag the poor boy down.

"It's not as if I beat them…" he said which meant it had probably been Hibari who'd beaten them. Suddenly Hibari was fairly close to me picking up the tonfa he'd thrown at Mukuro. I swallowed and prayed that he wouldn't notice me. Thankfully his attention was on the boy who'd started this whole thing.

"Have you prepared yourself?" Hibari asked Mukuro as he straightened up. Mukuro turned towards him seemingly unimpressed.

"You're very scary," Mukuro said, "But please don't get between me and the Vongola. Besides, you can barely stand right now. I've broken many of your bones, after all."

My eyes widened. Sure I didn't really like Hibari, but I didn't dislike him that much. Besides he was good at what he did for Namimori, though I wished he wouldn't be so harsh with some people. Despite his injures, and likely injured pride he turned towards Mukuro and held one of his tonfa before himself.

"Have you prepared your last will?" he asked. If it were anyone other than Mukuro they'd have been long gone before Hibari ever finished asking that question, but it was and he didn't.

"You say such amusing things," Mukuro said, "I have no choice. I'd better take care of you first," the soft flame showed up again as he rushed towards Hibari, "This will end in a moment!"

I was only just in time to dodge out of the way after realizing that I was in the middle of the two. Mukuro swung his trident down at Hibari's head, but the prefect blocked it expertly. After that everything became a flurry of blows as the two clashed. It was hard to tell what was going on or who had the upper hand, even with Hibari being injured. Finally the two briefly reached a standstill.

"How long does a moment for you last?" Hibari asked his opponent. Mukuro didn't reply, instead he merely chuckled. All my attention was absorbed in the fight; I couldn't tear my eyes away. The only thing that clued me in to there having been a conversation was Mukuro.

"It seems so," he said, "We may never know how the battle would have gone if he had not been hurt."

Hibari stopped mid-swing as blood spattered the ground. It was coming from the prefect; one of his wounds must have opened up again.

"Hibari-san!" Tsuna called out, his voice laced with concern. I'd have called out too if not for fear of being killed. As it was I wished never to see anyone in Hibari's position ever again.

"This is a waste of time," Mukuro said, "Let's finish this quickly."

The blood bled through the shoulder of Hibari's shirt as he looked up at his opponent. Then out of nowhere sakura appeared fluttering softly to the ground. It smelled and looked so real, but there was no way it could be. It was out of season for one and it had just appeared out of thin air; plus it was glowing. Which meant this was another of Mukuro's illusions.

"This is how he beat Hibari before," I said to myself, "An illusion of sakura to trigger Hibari's sickness, given to him by Shamal."

"Let's have you kneel before me again," Mukuro said with a laugh. Hibari suddenly fell forward only to land a clean hit to Mukuro who was clearly surprised. Gokudera chuckled which had the heterochromatic eyes looking at him.

"You weren't expecting this," Gokudera said, "I got medicine for Hibari from Shamal."

Hibari went to strike Mukuro again when I felt myself being dragged to my feet. I hadn't realized how close they'd been to me.

"Yuzuki!" Tsuna cried out. My heart was racing as Mukuro held me in place before him. I could see my life flashing before me as Hibari paused mid-swing. It was easy for me to imagine myself as a cornered animal between two predators that couldn't decide whether to take each other or me out first.

"Oh, what's the matter? I'm right here," Mukuro taunted. I swallowed eyes locked with Hibari's. I was scared of him taking action, and scared that he wouldn't. If he did I'd likely end up being hurt worse than I already was, but if he didn't something terrible might happen. As it was Hibari was just standing there staring at Mukuro.

"I-I-I," I tried to speak but nothing came out except 'I'. Finally, I did another stupid yet necessary thing. I elbowed Mukuro in the gut which allowed me to free myself. As soon as I was clear Hibari struck, sending the blue haired boy flying. After that things blurred for a moment as I tried desperately to catch my breath, and stop the pounding of my heart. When my vision cleared I found Hibari looking down at me.

"Herbivore… I'll bite… you to death," he managed to get out before collapsing. On impulse I caught him before he hit the ground and gently lowered him to the floor. Despite what he said, he hadn't attacked me when Mukuro held me captive meaning that in a way he was a good person or that he at least cared for the safety of Nami-chuu students.

"Arigatou Hibari," I said quietly. I was quickly joined by the others.

"Hibari-san, are you okay?" Tsuna asked kneeling down next to him. I looked over at my friend.

"I think he's fine Tsuna… well as fine as anyone can be after all that," I said.

"He was fighting unconsciously near the end," Reborn spoke up, "He must have been really upset that he lost once before."

"Somehow I don't find that surprising," I said, "Besides it was rigged from the start so I would even really call it a battle."

"Oh right! We need to take everyone to the hospital, quickly!" Tsuna said.

"Nothing to worry about," Reborn said confidently, "A very skilled Vongola medical team is on its way."

"That team will be useless," Mukuro's voice caught everyone's attention; looking over we found him holding an eerily glowing gun, "Because there will be no survivors."

"You!" Gokudera said shielding Tsuna. I stood and did the same, but we were all puzzled when Mukuro slowly brought the gun to his head.

"Let's meet again. Arrivederci," shocked as I was still able to take a few steps towards him. What my plan was I wasn't sure, but I didn't want him taking his own life. Not because I liked him, but because he needed to pay for what he did. Unfortunately, I didn't make it and Mukuro fell back lifeless.

"He killed himself," Gokudera stated. I fought the urge to get sick as it would benefit no one. All the same this was the first time I'd witnessed death up close and it shocked me deeply. But I couldn't dwell on it now. I had to help everyone get out of here and to the medical team. My thoughts blocked everything from the outside world as my body numbly drifted over to Fuuta. But everything jumped back when I heard Tsuna shout.

"Gokudera-kun! Stay away!" my head whipped around just in time to see Bianchi slash at her brother with Mukuro's trident, though it was only the detachable part. Not only was that strange, but that kind of movement would only prove to be bad in the long run since her wound was pretty deep. Gokudera barely managed to dodge and landed awkwardly on the ground looking up at his sister in shock.

"Why did you do that, Sis?!" he asked. Something was definitely wrong with her. Despite the hostility Gokudera showed her she deeply loved him.

"That was strange," Bianchi said. Tsuna was staring at Bianchi with wide eyes. I could tell he was trying to think of something, anything that could explain Binachi's actions. Finally he seemed to come to a realization, and no more than he'd done that then Gokudera's older sister laughed.

"We meet again," Bianchi said.

"He's back!" Tsuna cried. For a moment I was lost until I realized there was only one person he could be talking about, Rokudo Mukuro.

"I still have something I must do," Mukuro-Bianchi** said, "I've returned from Hell."

…

*Path of Demons: In the subbed version of the anime that I watch it's called the Path of Hell, but here I've changed it. To me it just makes more sense as all of Mukuro's other paths are named after the thing one is reborn as, i.e. Path of Asura. So one could make the assumption that since demons live in Hell the First Path could indeed be called the Path of Demons.

**Mukuro-Bianchi: This is to help keep things straight for the whole next chapter. For those of you who haven't gotten this far in the anime the next bit contains spoilers, so don't read if you want to watch the anime first. Since Mukuro possesses multiple people each person will have the same layout as Bianchi does. So Gokudera would be Mukuro-Gokudera, and so on for all the other characters.

 **Me: Well there you have it, the end of Chapter Fifteen. I hope my little notes above helped clarify things a bit and I'm sorry if I spoiled anything for anyone.**

 **Yuzuki: Well, I think they'll understand. In any case I thought I was gonna die there for a while.**

 **Me: Well, I almost had Hibari hit you when Mukuro was using you as a shield, but then I figured since Hibari's usually all about keeping Nami-chuu students safe that he'd overlook your actions until after everything was solved. So any way that's why that happened. With us today is… um, is anyone with us today?**

 **Yuzuki: Now that you mention it… I think we're alone.**

 **?: I'm afraid not.**

 **Me: Y-you? But you're not in the story yet?**

 **?: So… what's your point? I just thought you might like someone to handle the disclaimer today, but apparently you don't.**

 **Me: Wait! I never said you couldn't do it… I was just a little surprised that you were here.**

 **?: Well, I'll be coming in soon with some others. So I figured it's be okay to show up a little early. Now do you want me to say it or not.**

 **Me: Go right ahead.**

 **?: CloudSkylark18 owns nothing of KHR otherwise she probably wouldn't be writing FanFiction for it. However, she owns her OCs and the plot when it involves them.**

 **Yuzuki: Nicely done… for once.**

 **?: What was that?**

 **Yuzuki: Hard of hearing now are we?**

 **?: Why you!**

 **Me: Calm down both of you or take it outside. Now, where was I… oh, right. Thank you all for reading this fanfiction and sticking with me all this time. So until next time ja ne.**


	17. Continuing the Battle from the Grave

Continuing the Battle from the Grave

"He really is…" Gokudera trailed off.

"Is that…?" Tsuna was unable to finish. I couldn't understand how it had happened. We'd all seen Mukuro shoot himself, and yet here he was possessing Binachi.

"The only thing I can think of is…" Reborn trailed off as well. As Mukuro-Bianchi stepped forward holding the trident menacingly.

"Who shall I take care of first?" Mukuro-Bianchi asked looking at each of us in turn. I pulled Fuuta closer, and gave her a look that dared her to try.

"Jyuudaime, let me handle this," Gokudera said a very determined look on his face.

"But, she's…" Tsuna started but was cut off by Gokudera's next actions. I found myself in the midst of an anime fall as the silverette began an exorcism on his sister. On one hand I could see it working but on the other it was just plan foolish. However, much to my surprise and Tsuna's it worked. Bianchi fell forward unconscious.

"Bianchi!" Tsuna's concerned voice called out to the girl, "What happened?"

"I don't know," Reborn said. That made me feel better and worse because if Reborn was confused about something then I didn't feel so lost, but something bad might happen.

"Bianchi?" Tsuna moved towards her cautiously. Before he could touch her something caught his attention. He looked over his shoulder to find Gokudera standing there. Something about that had me on edge, but I didn't know why; it was just Gokudera after all.

"Shall I do it?" the silverette asked.

"Gokudera-kun," Tsuna said relief prominent in his voice, but suddenly he was forced to dodge as Gokudera tried to bring the trident down on the brunet.

"Hey, what was that about?!" I asked, "Tsuna what's going on?"

"Reborn! Gokudera-kun's been…" realization flooded over me. Mukuro had somehow been able to possess Gokudera as well.

"So it wasn't luck," Mukuro-Gokudera said, "You're the first to realize that I've possessed someone after one glance. You're amusing to no end."

"What's going on?" Tsuna asked looking over at Reborn clearly freaking out.

"There's no mistake. You made it look like suicide, but you used that bullet," Mukuro-Gokudera didn't look fazed as Reborn continued, "The Possession Bullet is forbidden. Where did you get it?"

Mukuro-Gokudera laughed, "So you noticed that this is a possession caused by a special bullet?"

"What? Special bullet?" Tsuna asked, "Like the Dying Will Bullet?"

"Wait so this is like what Reborn shoots at you Tsuna?" I asked.

"That's right," Reborn answered, "As the name says, the Possession Bullet allows you to take control of another person's body."

"What?! That's why Bianchi and Gokudera-kun have been…" Tsuna's voice trailed off.

"It was a special bullet created by the Estraneo Family. Not only do you need a strong spirit, but you must also be suited for the bullet," Reborn continued.

"Kufufu, it suits me just fine," Mukuro-Gokudera said. I glared at him; all of this was just wrong and I hated him saying things like that with my friends' faces.

"Long ago, the cold-blooded use of the Possession Bullet caused it to be forbidden. The bullets and the knowledge used to create them should have been destroyed back then," Reborn said. I wondered if there was a way to break Mukuro's hold on any one he possessed; like with Fuuta being mind-control. But once again it seemed as though the boy could read my mind.

"This is nothing like mind control. I don't control them; I take them over," Mukuro-Gokudera said, "Which means that this body is mine," he drew Gokudera's nail over his neck leaving a cut that oozed blood.

"Stop that!" Tsuna shouted which only seemed to amuse the one behind this entire affair.

"That bullet must have been what you used to take control of men like Lanchia," I wasn't sure who Lanchia was but apparently it was a touchy subject as Reborn continued, "But why do you have them?"

"Let me just say," Mukuro-Gokudera answered, "It's because they are mine. Now, I'll possess you next, Vongola Jyuudaime."

"Me?!" Tsuna cried out. I gripped Fuuta tighter glaring at the one threatening my friend.

"Over my dead body you will," I hissed earning myself an amused look.

"I knew it. You goal is to…" Reborn trailed off.

"It is not my goal; it is my means," Mukuro-Gokudera said, "My revenge can only begin after taking control of a young mafia boss."

"What are you saying?" Tsuna asked fearfully backing away from his possessed friend, "No! Possessing me would be useless, and nothing would come of it!"

"Be careful of his weapon," Reborn said cutting through Tsuna's panic, "If you're wounded by that blade, he'll be able to possess you."

My mind blanked for a minute, _'If that's true then… if Fuuta stabbed me with that same weapon, Mukuro will be able to possess me.'_

When I came out of my thoughts, I found Tsuna being sent flying by Hibari. It wasn't hard for me to figure out that he wasn't moving by his own power; there wasn't any way even for him to do that. In fact Hibari's body ended up collapsing after Mukuro used it to deal Tsuna a heavy blow.

"Oh?" Mukuro-Hibari said, "This body isn't of much use."*

"Hibari-san!" Tsuna was instantly at the prefect's side, "Mukuro's presence is gone."

"Be careful," Reborn's voice caught both mine and Tsuna's attention, "He'll possess either Gokudera or Bianchi."

"Or me," I said, "I'm pretty sure Fuuta stabbed me with Mukuro's weapon earlier."

"Eh, Yuzuki too?!" Tsuna cried, "That's terrible!"

Gokudera's body started to twitch a bit, but even as that was happening I felt a strange sort of pressure at the back of my head. It wasn't a headache; it was too soft for that. Still whatever the sensation was it was persistent and annoying. I was distracted by the weird feeling long enough to see both Bianchi and Gokudera standing. At first I thought that at least one of them was an ally until Tsuna spoke up.

"Two at the same time?" he asked, "Ah, what about Yuzuki?"

"I'm fine Tsuna… or am I wrong?" I asked nervously. Tsuna shook his head a relieved look plastered on his face**.

"Oh, you're quiet intriguing Hisoka Yuzuki," Mukuro-Gokudera said, "Perhaps I underestimated you."

"So it's just Gokudera and Bianchi then?" I asked ignoring the unnerving look I was receiving from my possessed friends. Reborn shook his head.

"No, that's not all of it," he said. Suddenly the door behind us was thrown open revealing two strangers. One had unruly blond hair with a scar across his nose while the other wore glasses and a white beanie that covered his dark hair.

"There's them as well," Reborn said. I was about to ask who they were, but Tsuna's panicked scream stopped me from saying anything.

"Four Mukuros!" his yell echoed a bit around the room.

"At least it's not five," I muttered. Out of everyone in the room only two of us could fight. Bianchi and Gokudera were out of commission having been possessed. The two newcomers even if Mukuro hadn't been using their bodies would have been enemies judging by Tsuna's reaction. Fuuta was too young and utterly spent, and Hibari… well he shouldn't have been able to move during his rematch with Mukuro but he had and now he was paying the price. And Reborn would be breaking the law if he stepped in. Add to that the fact that Tsuna and I were both injured, though our enemies were as well.

"Possessing four people at once…" Reborn paused for just a moment, "It's unheard of."

"That's not all," Mukuro-Gokudera said throwing bombs into the air. Tsuna began running hands over his ears or at least somewhere around there. I, myself did the best I could to keep Fuuta and Hibari from being hit.

"He can use the abilities of those he possesses as well," Reborn said. He glanced to the side and dodged the blond guy as he took a swing at the hitman.

"You should worry about your own life, Arcobaleno," the other stranger said. If the situation hadn't been so serious and Mukuro so intent on killing Reborn I would have laughed at the guy's choice of weapon; yo-yo's. But when needles shot out of the seemingly harmless toy I thought better of it. Reborn defended himself from them by whipping his jacket off just in the nick of time. At the same moment Mukuro-Gokudera threw more bombs at Tsuna, who somehow managed to come out of the onslaught alive.

"The Second Path, Path of the Hungry Ghost, is the skill used to steal the enemy's abilities," Mukuro-Gokudera said.

"This is really bad," Reborn said and indeed the situation continued to look bleaker and bleaker as time dragged on, "He's possessed them, plus he can use skills he's stolen."

Suddenly the ground next to Tsuna began to bubble, and burn before a geyser of fire shot out of the ground. Since I doubted there was anything in this place that could create such a reaction I assumed it was another illusion created by Mukuro.

"Save me!" Tsuna shouted. I wanted to shout over the noise, which didn't really exist, to tell Tsuna it wasn't real, but I doubted that he'd listen to me.

"If possible, I'd like to take you without harming you," the blond with the scar said. I started when I recognized his voice. This was the Kanna Ken that Mukuro had talked with earlier, and if that were true than maybe this other guy with the beanie was Chikusa.

"You can surrender, you know," Mukuro-Chikusa said.

"You won't get him," I growled, "Not while I'm here. Tsuna don't you da-" I was cut off by my friend screaming.

"I can't take anymore!" Tsuna shouted. Reborn looked at him and I could almost see the disappointment radiating off him.

"You haven't learned a thing," the hitman said leaping up towards Mukuro-Gokudera, "This is an illusion!"

"You'd better worry about yourself!" Reborn's target said throwing bombs towards him. The bombs blew up obscuring everyone's view and dispelling the illusion.

"Reborn!" Tsuna called out in a tone that carried both shock and worry with a bit of fear thrown in as well.

"That shouldn't have killed you, Arcobaleno!" Mukuro-Bianchi called out. That I could definitely believe. Then out of the smoke Reborn's hat appeared trailing a good deal of smoke. The moment it was spotted Mukuro-Ken leaped for it trident in hand. It took me a moment to process what that would mean for us. If Reborn ended up possessed I knew we'd end up losing this battle, and a lot more as well.

"Found you!" Mukuro-Ken called out triumphantly as he stuck the weapon into the top of the hat. Tsuna gasped, though whether because of fear or some other realization I don't know. Thankfully, if it was fear there was no need for worry as it was merely the hat and nothing else. As Mukuro-Ken looked at the article of clothing Reborn leaped past and reclaimed his hat landing neatly away from one of our foes.

"I haven't felt the air of real combat in a while," the hitman remarked over his shoulder which definitely had Tsuna relieved, "I can't help. Tsuna, do something quickly."

"Don't be unreasonable," Tsuna said being forced to run as Mukuro-Gokudera threw more bombs, "This is beyond what I can handle!"

"Tsuna…" I murmured. I couldn't argue with either of them. Reborn was just following whatever law it was in the mafia that didn't let him help, and Tsuna was just a middle-schooler who was thrust into a world he didn't want to be in. Yeah, we'd come out of some tough situations beforehand, but this was on a whole new level.

"If you're my student-" Reborn was forced to dodge an attack from Mukuro-Chikusa but continued once he landed, "If you're my student, you can overcome this."

This had Tsuna yelling over his shoulder as he ran, "It's unfair to use unreasonable logic like that!"

Mukuro-Bianchi laughed, "Your teacher it panicking. He's falling into chaos over his student's crisis."

I lost track of things as I was forced to knock a few sticks of stray dynamite away from the two people I was guarding. I'd taken off my school uniform's blazer in order to knock away any of the needles, that were sent my way by Mukuro-Chikusa. Thankfully, things came to a halt though we were still very much in the midst of a battle.

"That's enough talk; let's bring this to an end," Mukuro-Chikusa said making his way over to Tsuna. The flame appeared in his eye as he rushed Tsuna. Tsuna freaked out, but the boy collapsed about half-way to my friend. I had to wonder if this was a trick or something else.

"What?" Mukuro-Ken asked, "It happens sometimes. Even if I take over someone's body, when that body breaks, there's nothing I can do."

"That's…" Tsuna trailed off; his compassion for anyone was showing up again, "You're forcing them to move even though their wounds shouldn't allow it?"

"That's why you didn't possess Hibari," Reborn observed.

"At least for very long," I said under breath.

"Chikusa can go a little further," Mukuro-Ken said looking over at the other.

"If you force him, his wounds will-" Tsuna was cut off by the boy in question.

"Kufufu, I'm fine," Mukuro-Chikusa said, "I don't feel pain."

Tsuna was clearly shocked by that reply, "Isn't that your friend's body?!"

"That's incorrect. Once I possess them, it's my body. It's my right to decide whether it breaks or dies," came the reply. My thoughts already fairly jumbled from this entire business flew to my brother. If he were here and Mukuro possessed him… would my brother have died? Well, if Mukuro's words were anything to go by then that might have indeed been the outcome.

 _'Arashi, I'm glad you're in Italy; far away from all this even though I miss you. I'm just glad that you're safe,'_ I thought.

~Somewhere in Italy; Arashi's POV~

This whole day had my emotions all over the place. Nervousness, dread, fear, shock, the list probably went on and on. I knew none of those emotions came from me as there was nothing around that would cause me to feel that way. My parents still hadn't found the doctor, and it was beginning to wear on all of us. Mom was starting to lose hope as the search kept turning up cold, and it was all my dad could do to keep her spirits up. However, it was painfully clear that my father was also deeply frustrated. Haruto, ever the bundle of energy, was completely bored and found nothing to interest him. I, myself just really wanted to go home. Being apart from Yuzuki was hard enough, but nearly half-way around the world and for so long made it worse.

As it was all the emotions I felt came from Yuzuki. At one point I felt like I was going to be sick, but then the feeling left me and I had to wonder what had triggered that reaction from my sister. A while after that there was some sort of weird feeling I got in the back of my head. Persistent and dull, not a headache, but also nothing that I'd ever felt before. It was almost like someone was trying to get into my head, but something was preventing it from happening.

 _'Yuzuki just what is going on with you?'_ I wondered. Wishing again that I'd been born healthy and was able to protect my twin.

 _'One day I'll be able to stand at your side and protect you, just like you've been protecting me,'_ I said, _'And you can bet that's a promise nee-san.'_

~Back at Kokuyo Land; Yuzuki's POV~

"That's wrong," Tsuna said. I had to agree; something like this was horrible. However, these boys seemed willing to do anything for Mukuro. Which had me wondering what their relationship was with each other.

"Do you have time to be concerned about others," Mukuro-Bianchi said, "when you're about to be killed?"

"Don't you want him alive?" I muttered under breath. As I spoke I readied myself to jump in should the need arise.

"You're an amusing man," Mukuro-Gokudera said, "You're not suited for the mafia."

As the two possessed siblings drew closer to Tsuna I could see the blood pouring out of their wounds. Tsuna could probably see it too; if this kept up they'd die of blood loss. Unfortunately, it seemed like this would be dragging out for quite some time.

"Please stop this!" Tsuna cried out, "They'll die!"

Mukuro-Gokudera laughed, "I remember now. When you were fighting Birds, you were about to stab yourself to save your girlfriend," I had no idea who this _Birds_ was but the only girl that came to mind was Kyoko which had me glaring once more at the boy behind this whole scheme, "Let's do it that way. Because of your softness, you will be possessed by me."

I growled lowly; determined to stop that from happening if I could.

"Listen well," Mukuro-Bianchi said, "If you don't want any further harm done to your friends…" she trailed off allowing Mukuro-Gokudera to pick up where she left off.

"Make a contract with me without trying to run away," the possessed silverette said.

"No way," Tsuna's voice was faint. I tried to think of a way to save Gokudera and Bianchi from this possession they were under while protecting Tsuna at the same time, but nothing jumped to the forefront of my mind.

"So you do hesitate," Mukuro-Ken said, "In the end, a person like you can't survive in this kind of world. You're not suited to be Vongola Jyuudaime. Now give me your body."

"What should I do? Reborn," Tsuna turned to look at the young hitman, "What should I do?!"

"I can't do anything for you," Reborn said, "Pull it off on your own."

"That's horrible! You always help me out! Don't abandon me, Reborn!" Tsuna shouted. In reply Reborn leaped at my brunette friend and kicked him square in the face. Once Tsuna hit the floor Reborn landed on my friend's chest.

"Don't sound so pathetic," Reborn chastised the boy.

"But…" Tsuna trailed off momentarily, "What can I do?"

"You listening Tsuna?" Reborn asked pulling Tsuna up by his shirt collar," You're Vongola Jyuudaime more than anyone else! If you shout out your feelings, that would be the answer a Vongola would give."

With that Reborn leapt away from Tsuna allowing my friend space to think. I looked between the two a small smile on my face. I could honestly say that I agreed wholeheartedly with Reborn, even though I didn't really understand why Tsuna had been chosen as a Mafia boss. Besides Mukuro was definitely not a good choice, and even if he was I still wouldn't let him possess Tsuna to get the position.

"So the at-home tutor's given up in despair. What he really wants is to run far away from this place," Mukuro-Ken said, "Or you won't run for the sake of your friends?"

"I hate to burst your bubble," I said catching the blond's attention, "But I doubt Reborn's given up. In fact I'd say that he's got the right idea. Tsuna might not want to be Vongola Jyuudaime, but he'll always be more suited for the position than you. And I think you just might be surprised with what he really wants."

"Kufufu, and what if you're wrong Hisoka Yuzuki?" Mukuro-Chikusa asked.

"I don't think I am… but if I were you'd still have to go through me to get to him," I said confidence flowing through me. Before Mukuro, any of them, could try Tsuna's voice caught everyone's attention.

"I want to win," Tsuna said. Mukuro-Ken's countenance was riddled with shock, while Reborn smiled slightly… or maybe it was more along the lines of a smirk. I, myself, was proud of my friend and was determined to give him any form of aide I could.

"I want to beat Mukuro," I could hear the conviction in my friend's voice.

 _'I help you any way I can Tsuna,'_ I sent him my silent support, _'Because I want to beat him too. He's done too much to simply walk away.'_

"Oh? That's unexpected, just as you promise Hisoka Yuzuki," Mukuro-Ken said before turning back to Tsuna, "I'll hear the rest of the story after I've possessed you; after you've killed your friends with your own hands," the Dying Will Flame appeared in his eye as a feral grin split his face.

"I don't want to lose to such a terrible person. I want to beat this guy!" Tsuna shouted finally looking up. His eyes held a fire and a determination in them that had never been there before, or rather had never been there when he wasn't under the influence of the Dying Will Bullet. I grinned and, though no one noticed, nodded in agreement.

"This is the end!" Mukuro-Ken shouted lifting the trident above his head. Before I could step in; even before the possessed blond could do anything a brilliant green light enveloped the room. Everyone, save for Reborn, was startled and I was forced to look away from the bright light. Though I thought I saw a pair of familiar yellow-orange eyes before I was forced to avert my gaze. That didn't help much because a sticky strand-like substance shot everywhere, anchoring something in the air which were giving off the same kind of light as what they were attached to.

"Vongola! What did you do?!" Mukuro-Ken asked. But Tsuna was just as confused as everyone else.

"I didn't do anything!" Tsuna said before glancing directly into the light, "Leon!"

"Wait that's the chameleon?" I asked my voice incredulous.

"He's finally emerged," Reborn said as though it were the most normal thing in the world for a chameleon to be a glowing blob. Though maybe it was since nothing in my life made sense anymore.

"Emerged?" Tsuna asked.

"Like 'that' time," Reborn's voice was extremely cryptic, though he thankfully explained himself, "Like when Dino became the Bucking Bronco."

"I see," Mukuro-Ken said pulling one of the strands supporting Leon away from himself, "Arcobaleno, this is your doing."

"You're wrong. This is the shape-shifting chameleon Leon, my partner," at least that explained why Reborn was so nonchalant about his lizard being a blob, "For some reason, he becomes a cocoon when my students are given a trial."

"Is that what it was?" Tsuna asked. My friend looked over at me and I sent him a shrug coupled with a confused look.

"And when my student grows, he emerges," Reborn said. Tsuna let out a shocked noise, while I just took it all in and came to the realization that my life was never going to be normal again… if it had ever been normal since I moved to Namimori.

"That's amusing," Mukuro-Ken said.

"You seem to find a lot amusing," I grumbled, though no one seemed to hear me.

"I wondered what he'd show us at the end… his pet's emergence," Mukuro-Gokudera said.

"You two certainly are unique," Mukuro-Bianchi voiced her opinion before laughing.

"He's laughing at us," Tsuna said, "What is this? How is this related to Dino becoming the Bucking Bronco?"

All Reborn said in reply was, "Just watch."

"He's smiling?" Tsuna asked, but that was apparently not what was actually happening as Reborn spoke up.

"He's about to spit out a new item," the hitman said, "Just for you, my student."

"A new item?" my friend questioned. I blinked confused beyond belief.

"How's that even possible?" I asked myself, "Well, I suppose if he can shape-shift than I shouldn't be so surprised with everything else, but still."

"In Dino's case, he spat out the Bucking Bronco Whip and Enzo," Reborn said.

"What?!" Tsuna and I chorused, "Enzo was Leon's baby/came from Leon?!"

Before Tsuna and I could contemplate that for long Mukuro-Ken drew our attention, "I cannot put up with your play time forever. Let's call an end to this break and finish this," he charged towards Tsuna and instinctively I rose to my feet and took a few steps toward my friend. Before I was even able to get remotely close to the brunette Reborn kicked him out of the way.

"This is in the way," Mukuro-Ken said as he sliced through Leon much to my shock, "So I'll take care of it!"

The two halves of Leon landed with a 'splat' on the floor.

"Leon!" Tsuna's voice was filled with concern. But Leon slowly started forming back together much to the relief of both Tsuna and me. I watched in fascination as Leon turned into something similar to a ball. But my marveling was cut off as I heard Reborn's voice, though now I knew why Dino had wanted Leon.

"More importantly, something was shot upwards," I followed Tsuna's lead as he looked up at the ceiling. Something was glowing up there, I squinted trying to get a better look at the item Leon had given Tsuna, but it was only as it, or rather they, descended that I saw what it was. A pair of white mittens with two red stripes on each, one located above and the other below a red twenty-seven stitched on to them.

 _'Mittens? Why in the world would Tsuna receive mittens? Hmm… maybe there's something we're missing… then again maybe there's not. Either way until we can figure out the point behind these things I'll have to help Tsuna out if I can,'_ I thought sending a glance over at Hibari and Fuuta. It didn't seem likely that Mukuro would have a use for either one as Hibari's body wasn't in any shape to fight and Fuuta was probably too tired to be of use to the possessor.

"You were amusing to the end," Mukuro-Ken said before bringing down the trident on Tsuna. My eyes went wide.

"Tsuna!" I shouted, but something seemed wrong. Tsuna had somehow managed to deflect the attack; at least if Mukuro-Ken was to be believed. Tsuna sat up slowly allowing me to let out a sigh of relief, but I was instantly on alert when my friend pulled off one of his mittens allowing a bullet to fall out.

"Maybe that has something to do with Tsuna's gloves," I murmured to myself. And if the strange glow that surrounded the bullet was anything to go by then it could very well be a bullet with special properties, like the Dying Will and Possession Bullets. Reborn and Mukuro only solidified my theory when those that the heterochromatic boy possessed tried to stop the hitman from reaching Tsuna to get the bullet. Thankfully, Tsuna's home tutor was able to safely reach Tsuna and take the bullet from my friend.

"I've never seen this kind of bullet before," Reborn said as he looked over the projectile, "We'll just have to give it a try."

"Give it a try?!" Tsuna was understandably freaked out.

"I won't let you!" Mukuro-Gokudera's voice broke through Tsuna's shock. A whole mess of bombs flew through the air towards the brunette.

"No way!" Tsuna shouted.

"I've given up on obtaining your body without harming it," Mukuro-Gokudera said. Leon flew towards Reborn turning into a pistol as he did, while at the same time I raced towards my friend even though I knew I wouldn't make it.

"You won't make it in time!" I didn't know who Mukuro-Gokudera was addressing; me or Reborn, though it seemed likely that he was probably addressing the both of us. The bombs exploded, knocking me off my feet from the force. I stared at the spot where Tsuna was eyes wide and full of worry for my friend.

"He took the full brunt of the bombs," Mukuro-Bianchi said. I whipped my head around to glare at her.

"Oh my, this is going to be a severe wound," Mukuro-Ken said. But I wasn't able to stay focused on him for long as Mukuro-Chikusa came up to Tsuna.

"It seems that it had no effect," the dark haired boy said, "So the special bullet was useless too. Now you're out of options. What an anti-climatic end. Now, let me take your near-death body from you."

With no real plan or thought even I placed myself between Tsuna and the possessed boy, "Over my dead one you will. I've already told you that I won't let you possess him."

"Oh, would you really give your life for him?" Mukuro-Chikusa asked. I nodded.

"I would," I replied, "Not only because he's my friend, but because others would miss him if something were to happen to him."

I was given a pitying look, and nearly asked what it was for when something barreled into me. My breath rushed out of my lungs as I hit the ground. Unfortunately I was prevented from regaining my lost breath by a hand around my throat. My hand flew up scrabbling for some purchase in order to free myself from the death grip I was under.

"Shall we test that then?" Mukuro-Ken asked a predatory grin on his face. I was dimly aware of Reborn saying something about real-time rebukes and that Tsuna was hearing them. My vision was already growing dark so I figured I might as well throw in one of my own.

"Don't…" my captor looked down at me, probably think that I was begging him not to kill me, "give up… Tsuna… otherwise everyone's hard work… and sacrifice… will mean nothing. You can… do this if you… can only get up… off the floor. Make good on… what you said earlier. Beat… Mukuro for… all… of us."

I could feel Mukuro-Ken's grip loosen a little, but by then it was too late for me to remain conscious. I just hoped that Tsuna would be able to take care of this by himself, though somehow I had a feeling that I was worried for nothing.

~With Arashi~

My parents had heard that the doctor we were looking for was going to be back within a week or two as he's had to go check on a patient quite a ways away***. And while that was good news I just couldn't seem to get into the mood. It might have had something to do with the fact that I found it hard to breath when they told me that. At first I thought it was an attack or maybe all the excitement and nerves that had been building up over the past while. But when the feeling didn't go away my thoughts instantly turned to Yuzuki.

After a few minutes, my heart nearly stopped when I didn't feel anything. But before I could get too worried something akin to a reassuring feeling flooded through me and I instantly relaxed. While Yuzuki might have been in trouble a few minutes ago she was safe for now, at least if that feeling I had was anything to go by. Still I made a mental note to ask Yuzuki just what she'd done while we were gone, and hopefully she'd have a good explanation.

…

*I took out some of the text as I was unsure whether Mukuro was talking aloud or internally when he possessed Hibari. So please don't get on my case about there being missing text.

**I will explain why Mukuro was unable to possess Yuzuki at a later date, but until then please bear with me

***Feel free to take a guess on said doctor's identity, though I'm sure most of you already have an idea of who it is

 **Me: Alright there's Chapter Sixteen taken care of. So, I hope you enjoyed it and the action as well. Also before I get too far this chapter and the previous one are each over five thousand words. That's insane, I've never written chapters that long!**

 **Yuzuki: I know right. This has got to be the most you've written... even compared to that Black Dragon story of your's. But, getting back on topic, why'd I end up unconscious?**

 **Me: Well, honestly it was kind of a spur of the moment thing. I don't know how that will bleed over into the next chapter, but something just compelled me to make that happen.**

 **Yuzuki: *sighs* Well, I suppose it was kind of meant to happen?**

 **Me: *curious* How so?**

 **Yuzuki: Do you not remember how many times I said Mukuro would have to go through me to get to Tsuna? Well, I think he finally took it to heart.**

 **Me: I guess that makes sense. Well, anyway… um… *looks around* I don't see anyone else here to say the disclaimer so I think I'll take care of it this time. I don't own KHR, but I do own my OCs and the plot revolving around them.**

 **Yuzuki: With that being said thank you for taking the time to read this fanfiction and please leave a review in the box below. Also guesses are still open for who you think I bumped into one my first day of school… or was it the second? Either way guesses will still be appreciated.**

 **Me: Though I will tell you the person in question will have some importance to the plot later on. But that's all I can say on the matter. So until next time minna, sayonara.**


	18. Mafia Prison Guards are Terrifying

Mafia Prison Guards are Terrifying

A scream cut through the silence that had engulfed me followed by the sound of something big hitting wood. I started, but everything was dark. I was awake now, but I couldn't open my eyes. All I could do was lie on the floor immobile as I strained my ears trying to figure out what was going on.

"So this is Vongola Jyuudaime," I heard Mukuro's voice say; his voice laced with pain, "The man who defeated me."

 _'So, Tsuna did beat him,'_ I thought relief rushing through my entire being, _'That's good. Now maybe we can all get out of here.'_

However, my happy mood didn't last when Mukuro spoke up again, "Now, finish me off," I heard a surprised noise come from Tsuna before Mukuro continued, "I choose death over being captured by the mafia."

"I…" it sounded like my friend moved when he spoke, "can't do that."

 _'Tsuna… I'm glad you won't take another's life. Besides death would do nothing but get him out of answering for all the things he's done,'_ my thoughts were brought to a close when I heard movement. I heard Tsuna gasp in surprise. My heart began to thump wildly in my chest, and I struggled to move when Mukuro's voice sounded.

"That softness is what's going to kill you!" the boy who'd caused this whole mess said.

"Mukuro! You-" Tsuna was cut off by his own sound of pain. I had to wonder what was happening in the fight now. Thankfully, it was just the true Mukuro that Tsuna had to deal with, but was that really better?

"I know that your odd abilities stem from the flames on your hands," I heard Mukuro say.

 _'Flames… on Tsuna's hands? Just what is going on?'_ I asked myself.

"If I can take hold of your arms, then you're nothing to fear!" the sound of a blow followed Mukuro's words, "Why do you think I sent so many assassins after you?" Mukuro asked my friend before answering his own question, "To take over your body after you've drawn our all of your power. Job well done. Now you can rest," I heard another blow being struck, "Now see what you're being thrown onto!"

There was only one thing that Mukuro could mean; his trident. He set everything up perfectly so he could possess Tsuna. With the blood roaring in my ears my eyes flew open. I pushed myself up ignoring the pain that flared in my back as I did. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a flickering light. I turned my attention in that direction, and everything seemed to stop. Tsuna was flying through the air, a flame on his forehead; softer and calmer than the one's I'd seen before but something about this one made it seem stronger. Suddenly the gloves on Tsuna's hands began to glow with a light that was nearly blinding.

The adrenaline racing in my blood flowed faster as Tsuna managed to stop himself just in the nick of time. Flames shot from his gloves keeping him just inches from the trident embedded in the wall. I wasn't the only one who was shocked by this turn of events.

"He used the flames as thrust?!" Mukuro's shocked voice caught my attention. While he was stuck in a shocked state Tsuna took the opportunity to propel himself forward towards him opponent.

"High-speed maneuvering, using the Dying Will Flames as propulsion," I heard Reborn say. Before Mukuro could react Tsuna was in front of him. My friend's right hand caught his opponent's face. The two flew through the air. Something seemed to happen to the heterochromatic boy as he was carried along, but I couldn't figure out what it was. Tsuna and his opponent reached the other side of the room and crashed into the wall. A cloud of dust was kicked up, and I stood; worried about my friend. Before I could take a step the dust cleared, revealing Tsuna standing over Mukuro who was beaten for real this time. Despite the throbbing I felt in my back I made my way over to Tsuna.

"It's over," Reborn said from his spot by my friend. Tsuna nodded and the flame on his forehead was extinguished. I peered around my friend, unseen, to look at the boy who'd caused so much trouble. In his unconscious state he looked peaceful. In a way that didn't seem fair after all the trouble he'd caused us. Still this side of Mukuro made him seem more human… more likeable, if such a thing were possible. The soft rise and fall of the boy's chest put to rest and worries I had of him being dead; after all I didn't want my friend to become a murderer, and Mukuro had yet to answer for his crimes. My friend turned back to his opponent.

"Mukuro…" my friend said, "He's not dead, is he? Is he alright?"

Reborn and I spoke up at the same time, "As soft as ever/He's just fine Tsuna."

"Ah, Yuzuki you're o-" a different voice cut Tsuna off.

"Stay away from him!" the three of us turned around to find Ken and Chikusa crawling towards us; it was Ken who had spoken, "Don't you mafia touch him!"

"Why?" Tsuna started, "Why do you go so far for Mukuro? You were possessed and used by Mukuro!"

This was something I was curious about as well. I had no idea what Mukuro was to these two. If they were friends than Mukuro did a poor job of treating them as such, and if they weren't then why would they let Mukuro do what he did to them.

"Don't talk to us like you understand," Chikusa said. It was clear that the two of them were in pain, and yet they were still determined to protect this boy.

"This is nothing," Ken said pushing himself up, "compared to the suffering we endured back then."

"Back then?" Tsuna questioned a puzzled look on his face. He briefly glanced over at me, but I was just as lost as he was.

"What happened?" Reborn asked, "Why do you hate the mafia so much?"

Ken looked up and the look in his eyes nearly had me backing up in fear, but there was also pain in that hostile gaze, "We were used as guinea pigs for human experimentation by our own Family," the blond said. My emotions were now in conflict. While these boys had done some terrible things and hurt my friends they didn't deserve that kind of past.

"Just as I suspected," Reborn said, "You're members of the Estraneo Family that created the forbidden Possession Bullet."

"You guys made it forbidden out of your own convenience," Ken said, "Because of that, our Family was being completely destroyed. The cornered heads of the Family began developing special weapons to survive. Children in the family were gathered together for those experiments. Day after day of cruel experiments…" the blond's posture as he spoke signaled that though he was speaking to us he was far away, "We had no way to escape. But he…" it was clear that he meant Mukuro, "He destroyed our current existence all by himself! He was the quiet one that never drew your attention. I think that was the first time I heard his voice. That moment for the first time in our lives…" Ken drifted off for a moment remembering something else, "We had a place to be. I won't let you destroy that!"

"But…" Tsuna said, "I can't sit and watch my friends get hurt. Because that's my place to be."

The two boys gave Tsuna a look of surprise. I smiled at my friend's sentiment. I had to wonder where my place to be was. Was it here protecting my friends, or was it protecting my brother? I didn't have an answer for that, at least not yet I didn't. My thoughts were cut short why I felt a chill run up my spine. I glanced over at the doorway to find three menacing figures standing there.

"The medical team!" Tsuna said happily. Before I could voice my doubts the three figures threw chains with collars at the three Kokuyo students. All sound faded as I watched the events unfurl. My eyes went wide as the boys were dragged away. Mukuro and Chikusa made no noise, while Ken struggled against his bonds. This wasn't right, or that's what my entire being screamed. Yes, Mukuro had done horrible things and yes Ken and Chikusa had helped him, but this… this punishment wasn't right. And it was clear I wasn't the only one who felt this way.

"What are you doing?!" Tsuna asked. Indeed if Reborn hadn't spoken up I had no doubt that Tsuna, or even I would have done something foolish.

"Quit it, Tsuna and don't do anything rash Yuzuki," the hitman said, "Defying them will be trouble."

"But-" Tsuna started but was cut off by his tutor.

"This is the law," Reborn said.

 _'It's a terrible law… but it's not one Tsuna or I can do anything about,'_ I thought as helpless anger tinged with fear flowed through my body. Despite my dislike of Mukuro I still took pity on him. My feelings were even more conflicted than before. He needed to be punished for his crimes, his friends too, but not like this. I was so lost with my own thoughts that it took me a moment to realize that the medical team had arrived and the three guards were gone. Tsuna and I were ignored for a few moments as the team took care of the others. I didn't mind since the others had more life-threatening wounds, especially Hibari. But then a thought struck me.

Mukuro had been using Fuuta's prowess ranking to find Tsuna, and if he were to be believed then I was on that list. Meaning if both those things were true then I was partially to blame for their attacks they launched to find my friend. And if Hibari ever found out I was on that list… I'd be dead four times over. Thankfully my fearful musings were brought to an abrupt halt by Tsuna falling to his knees; clutching his sides in pain.

"What is this?! My entire body hurts!" he cried. I felt a sweatdrop roll down my face.

 _'Only Tsuna could end up in pain after something like this, and not realize it before now,'_ I thought as a twinge of pain raced up my spine, _'Well, at least I knew I was hurt.'_

I walked over to the stage and slowly sat down. As I did Tsuna ended up passing out, and Reborn fell asleep in the middle of praising my friend. I smiled as the pain in my back dulled to a low throbbing, and allowed myself to fall into unconsciousness as well.

~With Arashi~

"Arashi-nii come play with me," Haruto called out as he ran ahead of me. I rolled my eyes, but followed him into the park with a smile. Ever since we'd been told that the doctor we'd been searching for would be back soon Haruto had become a bundle of energy once again. In fact everyone seemed to have energy to spare. Despite that I'd been tasked with keeping an eye on my younger brother while our dad did a little more digging, and mom did some window shopping. While I was in the middle of playing a small game of tag with Haruto I felt a rush of adrenaline sweep through me. With my heart pounding I froze in place allowing my brother to tag me. He ran only to pause a short ways away from me, and look back with concern.

"Arashi-nii are you okay? Should I go get Mom?" my little brother asked. I shook my head.

"I'm fine Haruto," I said as the adrenaline slowly calmed itself, "Besides we wouldn't want Mom and Dad to get mad at you for running off by yourself."

While I wasn't entirely sure if I was okay I did know that the feeling I'd just had, had come from Yuzuki. Thankfully, Haruto took me at my word and began running again; taunting me all the while. I took off after him, but not before sending a look in the direction of home.

 _'Yuzuki, you'll have some serious explaining to do when I get home,'_ I said silently, ' _So it'd better be good.'_

~Time Skip; A Few Weeks Later~

I looked at the door with nerves shooting all over the place. My mom sent me a reassuring glance, while my father put a comforting hand on my shoulder. Haruto was clinging to my hand and my mother's. We'd received word that the doctor had returned, and had immediately headed to the address we'd been given. I'd been excited and anxious to get here and see if anything could be done, but now that we were standing outside the doctor's building my heart was racing and a sick feeling settled in my stomach.

"Well, this is it," my dad said. I nodded before swallowing thickly.

"Everything will be just fine," my mom said. I wanted to believe her, but my head was spinning and my heart was trying to escape from my chest.

 _'Remember why you're doing this Arashi,'_ I said to myself, _'You want your parents to worry less about you. You want to be able to play baseball. You want to be able to spar with your father again. You want to play tag with Haruto without having to worry about an attack. But most importantly you want to be able to protect Yuzuki, just like she's been protecting you all this time.'_

I steeled myself with those thoughts as my father raised his fist to knock on the door. For a moment I wondered if this doctor was really even here. But that fear was unfounded as the door was opened by a middle aged man with black hair. He looked between us; his eyes widening a bit when they saw me.

"Dr. Shamal?" my mother asked, "You are him aren't you?"

"That's right," the man said, "And what can I do for you?"

Something about that name sounded familiar. I thought that maybe Yuzuki might have mentioned the name somewhere, but I couldn't think of where or why. I was dimly aware of my father explaining my situation to the Dr. Shamal, and after that was said and done being led inside the building. My family and I took a seat as the doctor pulled out a phone, and made a call. I caught the words 'favor', 'just like her', and 'I'll take care of it' before he ended the call.

"Alright then, Arashi was it," Dr. Shamal said, and I nodded in reply, "Please come with me."

With that he led me into a back room and had me take a seat in the only available chair. Then he walked over to the counter and pulled out a pill case. I blinked as he looked over each space before popping the lid of one open.

"I don't normally treat men you know," Dr. Shamal said startling me, "But I owe someone a couple favors, and he called one in for you."

"So you're treating me because you happened to owe some guy?" I asked, "You're not a normal doctor are you? And just what use are those pills if you haven't even given me a diagnosis?"

"Yeah, I'm not your average everyday doctor," he said, "I'm also a hitman, who specializes in rare diseases. One of which you happen to have, and that I know a great deal about. This pill here," he held up the medicine, "has another disease inside that will counteract the one you have."

"That doesn't make much sense," I said, "How can one single pill cure what I have?"

"Simple," Dr. Shamal said flicking the pill into the air, "It works like this."

As the pill flipped through the air it broke, and a little insect popped out of it. With the annoying buzzing it was making I was easily able to identify it as a mosquito, but something about this one was strange. Instead of the normal proboscis this one was pronged to look like a trident. I looked at the hitman confused, and more than a little nervous.

"It's called a trident mosquito," Dr. Shamal said, "Each one I have contains a different disease; I employ them to transfer the disease into my targets."

"And you're telling me all this why?" I asked.

"Because I owe someone else a favor as well, and this is what they wanted," the man said, "Besides I didn't want you killing that mosquito before it had a chance to do its work."

I reached up to my neck, and felt the raised bump left behind after the mosquito had done its job. I watched as the little blood-sucker landed on the doctor's finger, and sat there. Just like that it was all over; I was cured… well, if this guy were to be believed that is. I slowly stood, and when he made no move to stop me I headed for the door.

"Before I leave I wanted to ask you a couple more things," I said glancing over my shoulder, "You know my sister don't you? And who are you doing those favors for?"

"In answer, yes I've met your sister. She gave me a black eye actually," Dr. Shamal said, "And those guys that called in favors would like to remain anonymous, but if I'm not mistaken your sister's met them. Now is that all because if so, then you can leave and I can get back to more important things."

"Yeah, that was it," I said opening the door. My family stood the moment I left the back room. As my father started discuss price I became lost in my own thoughts.

 _'So this must be the one guy Yuzuki told me about; the one that tried to hit on her. Still, despite his problems in that area he seems to know his way around diseases and being a doctor in general,'_ I thought, _'But I still want to know who called in those favors, and how exactly could Yuzuki know them? Looks like I'll have some more questions for her when I get home. You better be prepared Yuzuki because I want some good explanations.'_

~With Yuzuki; A Few Weeks Later~

A few weeks had gone by after the Mukuro ordeal. My wound had healed up pretty fast; in fact next to Fuuta I made the quickest recovery. Tsuna had been next followed by Yamamoto and Gokudera, while Bianchi had taken a bit more time to recover. Thankfully though everyone had made a full recovery; well, everyone besides Hibari. But that was to be expected since he had several broken ribs, a few fractures in his arms and legs, and quite a bit of blood loss. Truthfully, he probably should have died from blood loss but he hadn't, which was good but not for me. Namimori would still have their protector, but I'd probably end up dead.

Which made it all the stranger that I ended up visiting him in the hospital. I figured that it had something to do with me feeling guilty about slightly causing his injuries and condition. Fuuta had shown me the list, and my name was really on it; Arashi's was too though he didn't go to school with me. Still, my name was there and that meant if I hadn't followed Fuuta I would have been targeted as well, which of course meant that Hibari had gone to Kokuyo land to inadvertently defend me and every other Namimori Middle student. Of course no one else was crazy enough to go visit Hibari during his hospital stay, save for the Disciplinary Committee. In fact I always made sure to visit the prefect when the Committee wasn't there and Hibari was asleep.

And I was sitting in Hibari's room at his bedside while all these thoughts ran through my head. Looking at the prefect, he looked very peaceful while asleep. It kind of reminded me of how human Mukuro had looked while in a similar position. I would have sighed if I hadn't been scared of waking the prefect up, and subsequently getting bitten to death for doing so. Instead I sat there quietly while I observed Hibari. His wounds were healing nicely and the doctors said his bones would mend fine as long as he didn't try anything to strenuous beforehand. Suddenly the prefect shifted, and I froze in place my heart beating erratically; I worried that the ravenette would hear it the way it beat against my ribcage. Thankfully Hibari simply let out a breath and remained asleep.

Despite the fact that I was safe for now, I took that movement as my indication to leave. I stood as quietly as I possibly could, and leaned down to grab my bag. I reached in and took out the neatly wrapped bento within and exchanged it for the empty one on the table beside the prefect. The boxed lunches had been a fairly new addition to the routine I'd created for myself; I'd inducted them after hearing some whisperings come from the nurses about the prefect refusing to eat at times. So I took a bit of their trouble away. After all, it's hard to refuse something when the person who gave it to you isn't around. With that done I headed to the door, and opened it slowly keeping my eye on Hibari. When the door was opened far enough for me to get through I exited the room and headed down the hall. But even though I was safe right now the feeling of being watched told me that it wouldn't be like that for long.

~Third Person POV~

Kusakabe Tetsuya was just coming to check up on the chairman when the door to the room was opened. It was slow, as though someone were trying to be stealthy. The vice-chairman hid around the corner and watched as a dark haired girl in the Namichuu girl's uniform slipped out of the room. She seemed to relax as she got farther away from the room, not that Kusakabe could blame her as the chairman could be quite ill-tempered. Despite the how at ease the girl appeared, it was clear that she knew she was being watched. And that coupled with the way she held herself had the vice-chairman wondering where he'd seen her before. As she rounded the corner Kusakabe stepped out of hiding and made his way towards the chairman's room.

He knocked, and after a moment of silence was told to enter the room. Hibari Kyoya was sitting in the bed eyeing the bento that was sitting on the table next to him. It was no longer the empty one that the chairman had eaten the day before. Instead it was tightly wrapped in a purple cloth, with no indication of how it had gotten there or of being touched after being left.

"Kusakabe Tetsuya," Hibari's voice snapped the vice-chairman away from his observations, "Do you know anything about this?"

"No," Kusakabe replied, but even as he said that his thoughts went to the girl he'd seen leaving the room, _'Could she be the one leaving the boxed lunches? After all the only other people that visit the chairman are myself and the other members of the Disciplinary Committee. But why would she be visiting the chairman?"_

"Would you like me to look into it?" Kusakabe asked. The look Hibari threw the vice-chairman said volumes. Giving the chairman a slight nod Kusakabe turned and left the room. The first thing the vice-chairman determined to do was look in on the chairman's unusual visitor.

~A Month Later; Yuzuki's POV~

A month had officially gone by since Mukuro's defeat and capture, which thankfully meant that I no longer had to visit Hibari in the hospital. Of course I didn't really have to do that in the first place, but my conscious wouldn't let me rest without visiting the prefect. Arashi, my parents, and Haruto had returned from Italy as well; they'd ended up staying a little longer than planned since the doctor hadn't charged as much as he usually did for some reason. Arashi and I both agreed that it had something to do with those favors that had been called in by those anonymous people that I was somehow supposed to know. Though, seeing as how the doctor that treated my brother was Trident Shamal, the guy that only treated women and was a skilled hitman, I had a feeling that I probably did know those people.

And thinking about it, those people would likely be in the mafia since the doctor was associated with them. A sudden 'clang' shattered my thoughts and I turned my attention to the baseball diamond just in time to watch the ball soar over the fence. It was one of the many home-runs that had been hit by Yamamoto during this game. Looking at my friend, who stood at home plate, I saw him lifting a fist to the sky in triumph.

"Way to go, Yamamoto!" Tsuna cheered from his place in between Ryohei and Gokudera. Reborn sat just behind them, while the rest of our little group sat in front.

"That's amazing, Yamamoto-kun!" Kyoko called out her own compliment.

"Really!" Haru intoned, "It's a great, big, gorgeous home-run!"

"Truly the best by far, Yamamoto!" I added my voice to the cheering. Lambo laughed.

"It's all thanks to Lambo-san!" the young boy cheered. I shook my head but smiled any way. Of course Gokudera had to ruin the mood.

"Geez, why is the opposing team struggling against Yamamoto?" he asked; his tone bored before he stood, "You! You'd better get your act together, or I'm gonna start a riot!" The silverette pulled out some of his dynamite as he yelled at the visiting team.

"Gokudera-kun, why did you come anyway?" Tsuna asked his friend. I nodded in agreement.

"Seriously, if you're going to cheer for the other team," I started looking over my shoulder at the bomber, "then why don't you go sit in their stands?"

"What was that?!" Gokudera turned his angry gaze to me. I smirked slightly before replying.

"What, have you become hard of hearing in the short time we've been here?" I asked tauntingly, "I asked why you're not sitting in the opposing team's stands, since you obviously don't want to cheer for Namimori Middle's team."

"As the tenth's right hand man I won't be far from his side," the silverette said, "but I refuse to cheer for the baseball idiot down there."

"Whatever, but I doubt even with your threats that the other team will beat Yamamoto. After all he's the best player in the area," I said, "Or so I've been told by many people countless times."

Gokudera fumed over my words, but ended up fainting after a stray baseball nearly hit Tsuna and was caught by Bianchi. I smiled and shook my head at the sight. Things were back to normal, or as normal as things could be when you were friends with a mafia boss to be (even if said boss didn't want the job). I ignored the scene behind me as the game drew to a close. Before I was able to get to comfortable I felt a chill run up my spine; the feeling of being watched accompanied it. But though I tried to find the source I was unable to. So instead I pushed away the feeling as the crowds dispersed and Tsuna tried to calm down a wailing Lambo.

~A Little Later~

After congratulating Yamamoto I split up from the rest of the group and began heading home. Unfortunately I didn't get far before I was stopped, and by the Disciplinary Committee no less. I swallowed, and wondered if they'd found out that I'd been visiting their chairman.

"Is something wrong?" I asked cautiously. The boys sent each other a look before one of them spoke.

"The vice-chairman would like to speak to you," the boy said. I blinked, utterly confused. Kusakabe Tetsuya wanted to speak with me; that wasn't what I'd been expecting. If they hadn't come to talk to me about visiting their leader, then did that mean that they didn't know I'd been there?

"Why… have I done something wrong?" I kept my voice as steady as I could.

"He didn't say," one of the other members said, "Now will you come with us?"

I nodded, and allowed the small group of four to lead me into the building. We ended up outside of the Reception Room, where one of the boys knocked on the door.

"We've brought Hisoka Yuzuki, Vice-chairman," the boy who knocked said. I was given permission to enter, and after steeling myself I entered the room. It was just as I remembered it from the brief glimpse I'd caught when I'd first met Hibari. Thankfully, said prefect was not in the room, which led me to believe that he was either on the roof or patrolling school grounds. Since dwelling on wonderings would get me nowhere I sent an even look to the vice-chairman.

"Are you going to explain why you wanted to see me, Kusakabe-san? As far as I know I've done nothing wrong," I said, "So, why am I here?"

"I simply have some questions for you," the vice-chairman said, "Once you've answered them you'll be free to leave."

"I see," I said slowly, "Well, then the sooner I answer these questions the faster I can get out of here. So, what do you want to know?"

"Around a month ago were you visiting the chairman while he was in the hospital and leaving bentos in his room?" Kusakabe asked, "I only ask because the chairman wanted to know."

I mentally sighed in relief; they didn't know that I was the one visiting him, "Well, I don't see why that would concern Hibari-san. If someone was visiting me, and leaving boxed lunches behind I certainly wouldn't be complaining. I mean yeah, I'd probably like to know the identity of the person who was doing that, but what if they wanted to remain anonymous. Besides what reason could I possible have for visiting Hibari-san? From what I can tell, I'd be the last person he'd want to see and quite frankly visiting would be the last thing I'd want to do."

"I see," Kusakabe said and for a brief moment I wondered if he'd seen through my lie, "Well then, sorry to have taken up your time."

"It was no trouble," I said, "Though I wish I could've been more help to you."

I took my leave then. As my steps echoed through the empty hall, my heart beat rapidly against my chest. The farther I moved away from the Reception Room and the school the slower my heart beat and the calmer I became. Thankfully, I was able to get away from school property with no other trouble and was quick to reach home. But I had a feeling that I hadn't heard the last of the Disciplinary Committee or Hibari. I chose to ignore that feeling and instead headed to the room Arashi and I shared. There the two of us talked about Arashi's recovery and what the next school year would hold; not just for me this time, but for him as well. Of course something told me that with Arashi around things, though better, would wind up getting crazier as well. Still, I figured such things would be easier to deal with if I had my brother by my side. After all we were family, and friends and we'd always made one heck of a team.

 **Me: And this chapter is officially done. Whew… what a conclusion to the Kokuyo arc. And this has to have the longest Arashi moment to date.**

 **Yuzuki: You're telling me. Man that was an emotional rollercoaster and a half, hopefully things will settle down a little.**

 **Arashi: I wouldn't count on it sis.**

 **Me: He has a point. After all you're friends with Tsuna and a lot happens when you're around the guy. Of course it's not his fault, but still. Anyways things should quiet down a bit for a while, though how much is the question.**

 **Arashi: Speaking of questions, I have one for the readers.**

 **Me: Well, feel free to ask them. We've got time after all.**

 **Arashi: Alright, so how many of you guessed the identity of the doctor I saw and got it right? I want complete honesty from you all. Let me know when you leave your review.**

 **Yuzuki: I'm curious about that as well now. Also take a guess at who those two mystery people were that helped my brother by calling in the favors. And speaking of guesses, we'd still like to see who you think it was that I bumped into all those chapters ago.**

 **Me: Yeah, guesses for that person would be appreciated as well. And as I've said before that character will have some major plot importance later in this story. With that being said we have the ten-year later Lambo with us today.**

 **TYL-Lambo: *raises hand in greeting* Yo, I was in the middle of eating dinner when I found myself here.**

 **Me: I see. Well, before you have to go would you mind saying the disclaimer.**

 **TYL-Lambo: *shrugs* I don't have anything else to do so why not. CloudSkylark18 doesn't own KHR, but she does own her OCs and the plot when it involves them.**

 **Me: Thanks Lambo-san.**

 **TYL-Lambo: It was no big deal. *puff of smoke***

 **Lambo: Gyahahaha Lambo-san has arrived! *turns to Yuzuki* Ne, Yuzuki-nee do you have any candy?**

 **Yuzuki: *reaches into pocket and pulls out a lollipop* Yeah, here you go Lambo.**

 **Me: *smiles* Well, on that note thank you all for reading. Your support means a lot to me and my OCs. So please leave a review in the box below and tell me what you think of this story and if you have any questions or thoughts for me feel free to PM or include it in your review.**


	19. Who Knew Being in the Same Class is Hard

Who Knew Being in the Same Class is Hard

The new school year had started, or it was going to start shortly. I was both excited and nervous, and it was for the exact same reason. Arashi would finally be able to join me at school. While I would enjoy his company I'd also have to introduce him to my friends and explain why I'd never told any of them about him. The only reason Arashi hadn't been able to come to class after he'd been cured by Doctor Shamal was because the man had advised our parents to keep him home until the next school year in the unlikely event he'd have a relapse. So I was stuck walking to school on my own to check the class placements, while Arashi was still at home since our parents had to fill out his forms along with explaining things, they were really going to say he was home-schooled until now since we all doubted that someone would believe that he'd had an unknown disease, so Arashi and I would be in the same class.

As I walked to school my thoughts were occupied with the musings of who I'd have in my class. I hoped that our little group would be together this year, even despite the trouble we somehow always managed to get mixed up in. Along the way I ended up running into Yamamoto, thankfully not literally.

"Ohayo, Yamamoto," I greeted my friend once I was within his hearing range.

"Yo, Yuzuki," came the ravenette's reply, "Are you nervous?"

"A little bit," I replied honestly, "After all there's no guarantee that we'll be together this year."

"It's no good to get worried about it. After all there's always the chance we'll be in the same class," Yamamoto said. This alone helped cheer me up, and ease the nerves that had been threatening to take over. It was something I never quite understood, but appreciated about Yamamoto. He was able to make others feel better (not in the same way Tsuna could) just by talking to them or even just being around people.

"You're right," I said, "I just really like hanging out with you guys. And it'd feel kind of weird not being in the same class."

"I know what you mean," it was all Yamamoto said as we stepped into the school yard. We sent each other reassuring looks, or as reassuring as we could make them under our circumstances. The two of us headed for the bulletin boards that held the sheets with our class rosters. We scanned each class for our names. I easily found mine in class 2-A, but Yamamoto's was in 2-C. Kyoko was in 2-B, while Gokudera, Hiromi and Ryou were in class 2-D. I didn't see Hana's name anywhere, but I did find Tsuna's. He and I were the only two of the group in 2-A.

For a moment Yamamoto and I stared at the board quietly. Both of us radiated disappointment. Finally after ages seemingly passed my friend spoke up.

"That's too bad, but at least you're with Tsuna," Yamamoto said. I nodded, but it was clear to see that it didn't make me feel any better.

"Yeah, but it would have been nice to be in the same class with all of you again," I said, "I mean just look at all the stuff we've been through together. Us being split up like this feels like the disbandment of a secret society or club."

Yamamoto nodded, and the two of us stared at the boards for a few more minutes utterly disappointed. I remained by the boards when Yamamoto headed to the school's entrance gate to see if the others had arrived yet. It wasn't long before my baseball loving friend returned with Tsuna, Gokudera and Kyoko in tow. By the looks on their faces I figured that Yamamoto had told them the news. My friends pushed their way to the front of the crowd.

"That can't be true," Tsuna said; his eyes scanning the boards everyone's names, "I'm in Class A. Kyoko-chan is-"

"There I am!" the girl cut Tsuna off, "Right next to you."

"Thank goodness," Tsuna said. Unfortunately his relief would be short lived since though Kyoko's name was next to my brunette friend's it was in Class B's announcements.

"In Class B," Kyoko said. Needless to say Tsuna was utterly crushed by this news. He crumpled to the ground in defeat.

"It's too bad, but we're in the same school, so we can see each other any time," Kyoko tried to cheer him up, "Besides you have Yuzuki in your class."

"Eh, Yuzuki," Tsuna turned to look at me. I nodded.

"Yep, the two of us are stuck with each other," I said, "I would have liked everyone to be in the same class, but that didn't happen."

"Hey, baseball-idiot I thought you said we we're all in separate classes!" Gokudera shouted at Yamamoto, "Why, does the suspicious girl get to be with the Tenth, when his right-hand man isn't?!"

"Suspicious girl… is that really the best you've got?" I turned to the silverette, "Besides it's not like we're in charge of figuring out class setups. But if you're so unhappy with this outcome then what's your solution?"

Gokudera's answer was immediate as he pulled out his dynamite, "I'll blow this nonsense away!"

 _'And get bitten to death in the process,'_ I thought, but then paused, _'Wait didn't Hibari graduate? Then that means we're all safe!'_

Unfortunately it was my turn to have my relief ended. Tsuna had just barely managed to stop Gokudera from blowing up the boards and anyone in the vicinity when a voice sounded from behind me.

"You're being fairly boisterous," and I went rigid. At first I thought I was imagining it, since in a way it would be weird not to see the prefect here, but one look at Tsuna's face told me that it was really him.

"H-Hibari-san," Tsuna stuttered. My four friends stayed put as the sane students ran for cover, and though I wished to join the majority I wasn't going to leave my friends to face the prefect alone. Leastways I was going to leave Tsuna to face Hibari again. Though it took all my will power to even turn around, and then I was only able to do so once I told myself that I'd rather face my death then never see it coming.

"Didn't you already graduate?" Tsuna asked the question that was burning in my mind.

"I can choose to be in any year I wish. No one can restrain me with logic," Hibari said. I looked around at the others, and thankfully found that they were all just as lost as I was… or at least Tsuna was. Before we could dwell on that Hibari spoke up again.

"So allow me to," he pulled out one of his tonfa here, "begin acting as a member of the Disciplinary Committee," his eyes travelled over to me and I cringed. I got the feeling that I wasn't going to survive this year.

"You wanna fight?" Gokudera's voice pulled Hibari's attention away from me. Well, maybe I would survive if I was lucky enough to have convenient distractions pop up at optimal moments. The two stood there in dramatic fashion. A light breeze ruffled their hair lightly as sakura petals drifted past us all. Hibari's eyes drifted to the side as some of the pink petals floated past him.

"Who's responsible for planting sakura here?" he asked. I blinked in confusion; as far as I knew the sakura had always been here. And Hibari should have known that if he was so attached to this school.

"It's always been here," Tsuna replied just as confused as I was. At least if his expression was anything to go by he was.

"Let's not," Hibari said as he stowed his tonfa away, "I just can't get into the mood for it here," then the prefect turned and walked away.

"Hibari-san…" Tsuna's voice was soft, "Does he hate sakura since he was infected with Sakura-kura?"

 _'That would make the most sense,'_ I thought and suddenly I was hit with an inspiration, _'Then does that mean if I'm around sakura Hibari won't feel like killing me? Though I don't really want to test that theory without a solid backup."_

"The interloper's gone! So can I go ahead?" Gokudera said completely ignoring Tsuna's question. And it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what he was asking to do.

"Not good!" Tsuna exclaimed. I nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, you'll wind up expelled or worse. Then you won't even be able to see Tsuna at all," I said. Gokudera opened his mouth to retort when someone interrupted him.

"What are you all shouting about?!" it was one of the teachers. He walked over to us where he stopped looking very stern.

"I'm sorry, sensei," Tsuna apologized. Unfortunately his apology was ruined when Gokudera walked up the man and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

"What's the meaning of this? Why are the Tenth and I in separate classes?!" the silverette asked irritation and anger in his voice.

 _'Smooth,'_ I thought, _'Real smooth hot-head.'_

"What are you doing? The teachers thought long and hard on selecting classes," the teacher said. He was clearly scared.

"Stop it, Gokudera-kun," Tsuna pleaded with his friend.

"Seriously, this is something that will get you expelled for sure," I said. I earned myself a glare from the bomber with that comment.

"If you don't like these classes, we can give you one chance," a familiar voice said. We all looked towards the school's gate confused. The students gathered in that vicinity parted. A small figure was running in place; a very strange run but running none the less

"I'm a special class distributor, Vongolavsky!" the speaker was obviously Reborn, but it seemed only Tsuna and I knew that. I couldn't see how anyone else wasn't able to make the connection; it was so obvious.

"Who the h*** are you?" Gokudera asked, "Using a name that sounds almost like our family's…"

I sighed, but turned my attention back to the hitman as he spoke again.

"Here is a blank class distribution form. If you can take it from me, you can fill it out as you see fit," _Vongolavsky_ said. I couldn't believe my ears; it sounded too good to be true. The others were just as surprised, and none more so than the teacher.

"What are you saying? That can't be allowed-" he was cut off by the Principal's arrival.

 _'If something like this can't be allowed then why can Hibari choose his class when he's not even supposed to be here anymore? Well, the answer is simple… everyone's too afraid to say anything to him,'_ I sighed at my thoughts. I was brought back to the present by the Principal's voice.

"Vongolavsky-san was recommended by a certain person. Let's leave it to him and see what comes of it," the Principal said.

"Recommended?" the teacher questioned, "By whom?" I had to admit that this had me curious as well. Who would have recommended _Vongolavsky_ to our Principal, and why?

"Someone I have the utmost respect for. He's never been wrong," was the answer the Principal gave. Unfortunately that didn't clear the air for me or anyone else.

"So there," _Vongolavsky_ said, "Shall we?"

Gokudera lunged for the hitman, "Of course!" _Vongolavsky_ jumped out of the way and landed on the silverette's head; using it as a springboard to make his getaway. Somehow, in a way that defied the laws of gravity the hitman parkoured his way to the school's roof.

"Don't run away!" Gokudera shouted after him before taking off, "Stop!"

"Wouldn't that defeat the purpose of the challenge?" I asked underbreath.

"This always happens with Gokudera-kun," Tsuna sighed. Yamamoto turned to Tsuna.

"Sounds like fun. Let's go too, Tsuna," the baseball player said. My brunette friend turned to look at him.

"Yamamoto?" Tsuna's voice was confused.

The black haired boy smiled, "It'd be better if we're all in the same class."

"My thoughts exactly," I said, "We've already done so much together, so we might as well consider ourselves stuck with one another."

Tsuna smiled and nodded, "Alright."

The three of us followed Gokudera and ended up at the gym. The hitman was still doing that weird run of his, but somehow he'd managed to stay ahead of us. Poor Tsuna was winded, while the rest of us were just fine.

"How can he be so quick when he runs like that?" Tsuna asked from his bent over position.

"Yamamoto, let's catch up," Gokudera said. That was such a shock that I stood there blinking in confusion; Gokudera was willingly working with Yamamoto. Once the shock had faded I took off after the two. My two friends were almost upon _Vongolavsky_ when he jumped and landed in a basketball hoop.

"Idiot, you got caught on your own!" Gokudera taunted the hitman. But this was not a dumb move; it was calculated. After all this was Reborn we were chasing, but of course only Tsuna and I realized it. So when one of the storage doors slid open I wasn't all that surprised. As it was I was only just able to back flip out of the basketballs' path. My three friends weren't so lucky.

"You're still too naïve," _Vongolavsky_ said, but he was only looking at the three that'd been run over.

"I'm going on ahead," I called over my shoulder as I took off after the hitman. It wasn't long before my three friends caught up with me. I held up a hand and motioned to the science room.

"He just went in there, and hasn't come out yet," I said. The three of us slid the door open and stepped inside. On the other side of one of the tables a hat bobbing up and down was barely visible. That was all we needed though to see that our target was still in the room. And yet, it all seemed too easy for this to be the end. Still I crept along with the three until we stood at the side of the table. Gokudera leaped and grabbed the hitman, or that's what appeared to have happened.

"Got him!" the silverette exclaimed holding up a dummy that showed different muscles and bones in the human body.

"He got us again," Yamamoto said in his ever cheerful way. Gokudera was extremely upset to have fallen for a trick like that. But I had a feeling we were missing something. How could _Vongolavsky_ get the dummy to move the way it had. He had to be close by, otherwise there would be little point in setting up this decoy; at least that's what made the most sense to me. But even I wasn't expecting what happened next.

The dummy's eyes moved and then it spoke, "You're still too naïve," it said in Reborn's voice. The four of us screamed as Gokudera threw the dummy to the side. Then the things head split down the center as _Vongolavsky_ jumped out.

"It's like we're playing with that kid at Tsuna's place," Yamamoto observed, which wasn't entirely wrong.

"I won't let that counselor get away with this," Gokudera vowed. I nodded in slight agreement. Then the four of us ran after the hitman. Gokudera and Yamamoto were right on his heels followed by me and then Tsuna. As we continued our chase I thought I heard Lambo's voice, but I didn't look back; focusing my attention ahead of me on _Vongolavsky_ so that I wouldn't lose him. Suddenly there was an explosion and I was sent flying forward. My heart was pounding against my chest, especially when I glanced up, and found myself looking at Hibari. Thankfully, he wasn't looking at me; instead he was looking beyond me at the aftermath of Lambo's attempt to help.

"Herbivores, what is the meaning of this?" the prefect asked. Tsuna shrieked, and tried to explain but only managed a stuttering response.

"It was my fault," I heard someone say. It was only when Hibari's gaze fell on me that I realized I was the one who'd spoken. I swallowed, and was forced to roll out of the way when he swung a tonfa at me. I yelped as I narrowly dodged his foot before leaping to my feet.

"Yuzuki!" Tsuna worriedly called out my name.

"Don't worry about me! Just go get that distribution sheet," I called out dodging another tonfa with a back flip, "I'll handle things here!" And then I took off running. Even if I hadn't heard the prefects footsteps chasing after me I still would've been able to tell that he was following me just from the sheer amount of bloodlust he was radiating. It was then that I realized just what a stupid decision I had made. I'd taken the blame for the damage of Namimori Middle, and to Hibari such an act was unforgivable. If I hadn't signed my death warrant before I certainly had now. It was clear after a few minutes of running that the prefect was slowly gaining on me; a fact that was compounded upon when I felt a slight tug on the back of my blazer from a close miss of a tonfa. I risked a glance over my shoulder and blanched at the murderous look in Hibari's eyes.

My lungs were burning for air, and my legs were crying out for a rest. But I forced myself on quickly rounding a corner only to trip on nothing, and hit the ground hard. I saw stars, and felt something warm on my face. I lifted my hand up to find blood, thankfully it wasn't serious; just a small cut on my cheek, but I didn't have time to worry about that because my pursuer had just caught up with me. I shakily stood, and turned to face Hibari. I was forced to leap backwards when he took a swing at me, and landed awkwardly. The prefect pressed his advantage, but somehow my stumbling dodges were enough to evade him… until I ran into a wall. With nowhere to go I braced myself for the blow that was to come, but I felt nothing. I glanced at Hibari curiously, and found him eying me with frustration but I thought I saw something else in his gaze too. But it was gone so fast I thought I must have imagined it.

"Hibari-san, is something wrong?" I asked. He said nothing; turning and heading back the way we'd come. I stared after him for a while utterly confused with what had just happened.

 _'What would possess Hibari to spare me? By rights I should be dead five times over now. Not that I'm complaining, I'm very glad to be alive still. It just doesn't make sense though,'_ my thoughts whirled through my head before settling on one, _'What was that other look I saw in his eyes? Could that have really been respect I saw? No, it doesn't make sense. What reason would Hibari have to respect me?'_

With no answer I headed off to find the nurse.

~A Little Later~

I stood next to my friends around one desk. Everyone was looking happy, but something in my expression must have looked strange because Tsuna spoke up.

"Hey, Yuzuki are you okay?" he asked. I started but nodded in reply.

"Yeah… just a little confused," I said. Before he could ask why Reborn leaped up onto the desk.

"It looks like everyone was able to advance together," the hitman said.

Gokudera leaned down a little to address Reborn, "It was a pain! A weird counselor tried to separate me and the Tenth!"

Tsuna sent a look at Gokudera that clearly said he couldn't believe the silverette hadn't noticed the similarities between said counselor and Reborn. Frankly I couldn't believe it either, especially seeing as how the boy was the smartest of our little group.

"I'm glad we're all together," Kyoko said happily. I shook myself away from my answerless thoughts and smiled with my friend.

"These members really do have to be together," Yamamoto said. I nodded in agreement, but Gokudera ruined the mood.

"We don't need you," the silverette said.

I huffed, "I could say the same about you, but I wanted to be in the same class as the rest of you. Need and want are two different things now aren't they."

Before Gokudera could retort Reborn spoke up, "Tsuna, they wished to be with you," Tsuna nodded with a smile, "You need to meet their expectations as the Family's boss."

Tsuna actually surprised me by getting in Reborn's face, "And like I've been saying, I'm not a boss!"

~Slightly Later~

"So Hibari-san didn't bite you to death?" Hiromi asked for the millionth time after I'd told her what had transpired earlier. I sighed and shook my head.

"No, otherwise I wouldn't be here now would I? Though I have no idea why I was allowed to leave unscathed. I'm glad to be alive and everything, but it just doesn't make sense," I said, "But no I wasn't bitten to death."

Hiromi opened her mouth to say something, but Ryou was fast enough to stop her, "Leave the girl alone Hiromi-chan, she's been through enough today. But I have a question for you Hisoka-san."

"I've told you that you can just call me Yuzuki, Ryou but what's your question?" I asked.

"How were you able to convince the teachers to let us choose our own class? It still doesn't seem real," the brown haired boy said.

"Well, I wasn't the one who convinced the teachers. That honor belongs to this counselor called Vongolavsky," I said, "And don't ask me how he managed to do that, but he was somehow able to. I'm just glad everyone's in the same class again."

The list of my classmate's flashed through my head again. Tsuna, Gokudera and Yamamoto; the three I was closest to. Kyoko, Hana, Hiromi and Ryou; the ones I'd first connected with upon moving to Namimori. A blank spot had been left upon the mysterious request of the counselor who'd made this all possible; it was likely for my brother. Then there was the matter of two foreign names; Benjamin and Jenna Black.

"Say Hiromi," I said gaining my friends attention, "Do you have any clue about who this Benjamin and Jenna Black are?"

"Oh them, they were in class 1-C last year. They're twins actually," Hiromi said, "I met them over break and we hit it off, so I just had to include them in this list."

So, there'd be another set of twins in this class of mine. Things had already gotten more interesting, and school had barely begun. I decided that once I got the chance I'd make it a point to meet these two siblings. After all, I had a feeling it'd be a good idea to get to know those two. For what reason, I had no idea but my feelings hadn't let me down before.

"So, Yuzuki do you have any plans for tonight?" Hiromi asked.

I shook my head, "Not really. I mean Tsuna invited me to go have sushi with him, but I declined. My family hasn't been home very long so I'd like to spend some time with them."

Ryou nodded, "Well, we'll see you tomorrow then."

I nodded in response before parting ways with my friends. As I headed around the corner I ran into someone. A sense of déjà vu hit me like a blow to the gut. I looked up to find a boy with brown hair and green eyes staring at me. I bowed apologetically.

"I'm so sorry," I said, "I wasn't paying attention to where I was going."

"It's fine. No harm done after all," the boy said; his voice sounded familiar to me but I couldn't place it, "I'm Benjamin Black, though I suppose you'd switch my surname with my first name in Japan. Regardless, you can just call me Benjamin or Ben if you prefer."

"Hey, Ben we're gonna be la- oh, whose this?" a girl with brown hair and green eyes asked when she saw me.

"Hisoka Yuzuki, but you can call me Yuzuki," I said, "You must be Jenna Black then."

The girl nodded, "Yep, but how'd you guess?"

"Well, Hiromi told me a bit about you and your brother," I replied, "That and you took look similar enough that it'd be kind of hard not to tell that the two of you are related."

The two did look very similar with their brown hair and green eyes. However, there were subtle and even major differences between the two. Jenna's hair was a shade darker than her brother's she also wore it long and in a ponytail, while Ben's eyes were nearly black being as dark green as they were in comparison to Jenna's light green eyes. Ben was tanner than his sister, while Jenna stood a few inches taller. Ben seemed to be a brash and straight forward person, while his sister seemed more reserved and self-conscious. And then there was the fact that Jenna was a girl and Ben was a boy.

"Well, it was nice meeting you Yuzuki-san," Jenna said, "I wish we could stay and talk but Ben and I are going to be late if we dawdle any longer."

"I understand, besides I have to be getting home myself," I smiled as I spoke, "But maybe we could hang out sometime if we're not busy."

Ben nodded, "Sound like fun, so we might just take you up on that. See you tomorrow Yuzuki-san."

With that I parted ways from the foreign students and began making my way home. My thoughts kept drifting back and forth between my encounter with Hibari and my meeting with the twins. Both were odd; the one-sided fight with Hibari because I'd lived to see another day and the twins because something about them felt off. I couldn't put my finger on it, but something about those siblings seemed dangerous; well-hidden but still there. Not only that but Ben's voice had seemed familiar, but no matter how hard I thought I couldn't remember where I'd heard it before. The more I tried to make sense of everything the worse my head felt, so I forcibly shook those thoughts away, and continued on home. At least I'd have something to tell Arashi about before we went to bed.

~That Night; Arashi's POV~

"So let me get this right," I started, "You sort of fought with Hibari, after taking the blame for causing damage to school property. And while he normally would have killed anyone else he spared you for some unknown reason. Not only that but you think he sort gave you some respect, but you can't be sure," my sister nodded, "So then after school was over you ran into some guy, and had a whole déjà vu moment. Then to top that off you find out that the guy you bumped into is one of the foreigners that your friend Hiromi-san is friends with. Then the guy's sister shows up and you have a little chat with them. And you also have the feeling that you've heard this guy's voice. So, then did I miss anything?" I asked. Yuzuki shook her head.

"Nope, that pretty much sums everything up nicely," she said trying to suppress a yawn. I hummed thoughtfully. I was just as lost as my sister was, even more so if I were being honest. These twins that my sister had encountered were as new to her as they'd be to me when I joined her at school tomorrow. And then I only had rumors to go by about Hibari. The only thing I could offer my sister was moral support as she tried to figure out what her life had become. I figured that once I was inducted into this little group of friends she had, if they'd accept me, I'd have to look to Yuzuki for my own moral support. Thankfully that was never hard. I smiled as my sister yawned again sleep blurring her blue-gray eyes that mirrored my own perfectly.

"Well, there's no sense dwelling on all this tonight. I say we both get some sleep," I said, "After all we have school in the morning."

~That Night; Yuzuki's POV~

"Right," I let out a yawn, "See you in the morning Arashi."

"Goodnight sis," I heard Arashi say before drifting off.

~Unknown Place; Yuzuki's POV~

I woke in an empty field. There was nothing for miles except grass, grass and more grass. I turned in place trying to find my bearings, but as everything looked the same it was impossible. In the back of my mind I knew I was still asleep, or something of the sort. Unfortunately, before I could figure out a way to wake myself up an eerily familiar voice spoke up.

"Oya, oya for someone as interesting as you, your Mindscape is certainly desolate," the voice said. A chill travelled up my spine as I recognized the voice.

"It's been awhile hasn't it, Hisoka Yuzuki?" I spun around to find Rokudo Mukuro standing right behind me, and he looked too happy for his own good.

 **Me: Well, this chapter is slightly shorter than the previous three, but it's still not a bad length. So then… what to say, what to say?**

 **Yuzuki: Well, guesses are still open on the two that Shamal owed favors to, and on the person I bumped into.**

 **Arashi: With that being said, what did you all think of that little cliffhangerish ending?**

 **Me: Yeah, that was a pretty good twist and ending if I do say so myself. Any ideas on what Mukuro wants?**

 **Yuzuki: Well, whatever it is it can't be good for me. Speaking of, what do you guys think is up with Hibari?**

 **Ben: More importantly what do you all think of me and my sister? And before you all get mad, I can officially be here now.**

 **Jenna: And that means I can be here too. I mean we were both finally introduced, so we should be fine, right?**

 **Me: Yep, it's totally fine for you both to be here now. And since you're here Jenna would you be so kind as to say the disclaimer?**

 **Jenna: Sure thing. CloudSkylark18 doesn't own KHR or the characters with in; both solely belong to Akira Amano.**

 **Ben: Yeah, if she did own them then she probably wouldn't be sitting around writing fanfics about the anime.**

 **Jenna: CloudSkylark18 does however, own her OCs and the plot when it concerns them.**

 **Me: Thanks Jenna. And so ends Chapter Eighteen. Please leave a review in the box below and let me know what you all think, and if you have any questions or thoughts you can also PM me and I'll do my best to answer them without revealing too much of the plot. Until next time minna, ja ne.**


	20. Even Sleep Can Cause Sleep Deprevation

Even Sleeping Can Cause Sleep-Deprivation

~In Mindscape; Yuzuki's POV~

"What are you doing here? More importantly how did you get in my head?" I asked, "Actually never mind answering, just get out!"

"Kufufu, but where's the fun in that Hisoka Yuzuki?" Mukuro chuckled. I glared at the boy, but he just returned my gaze evenly. I growled lowly, but chose to keep my distance. The two of us stood in silence. I took the time to observe my uninvited guest as he looked around at our surroundings thoughtfully. He looked the same as he had when I'd last seen him over two months ago. His blue hair was still in its pineapple-esque style, and his eyes were still their mismatched blue and red. He was even wearing the same school uniform. It made sense; I didn't really know why I'd thought he'd look any different; it hadn't been all that long since the incident after all. Seeing him made all my conflicted thoughts and feelings rush back, and that made me want him here even less than I had before.

That feeling only intensified when he suddenly sat down in a chair that, judging by his self-satisfied expression, he'd made himself.

"Aren't you going to sit down?" Mukuro asked gesturing to another chair that I was sure he made as well. I shook my head in response. Despite my mixed feelings for this boy I knew better than to trust him, at least for now I wouldn't trust him. Mukuro shrugged completely unconcerned by my refusal. He leaned forward clasping his hands in front of his face. I felt myself growing irritated by the ease my intruder held himself with; he obviously didn't feel threatened by me in the least.

"Now then, what were your questions for me again?" Mukuro asked only getting a glare out of me, "Kufufu, how terrifying you are Hisoka Yuzuki. I believe one of those questions was why I'm here, correct? Well, Mafia prison isn't exactly made to kill boredom, and I have quite a bit of time on my hands as well."

"Couldn't you find something better to do then instead of invading other peoples' minds? And if not, why would you decide to come to me?" I asked, though I mentally cursed. I'd been trying not to talk with him for the rest of his unwanted visit.

"Kufufu, I probably could but it's interesting to see the Mindscapes of other people. Yours is by far the most intriguing I've come across," Mukuro answered, "And as I said earlier you're interesting."

I growled, "Please, there's got to be hundreds of other people in the world that are far more interesting than I am."

"Regardless of the truth in that statement," Mukuro said, "You hold the most interest to me right now. I wasn't able to possess you and I've never failed before. The only thing wounding you accomplished was opening a path into your mind."

"So… you're saying that the only reason you're here is because you made Fuuta stab me, and instead of working normally it did something different instead," I reiterated, "But what about those others whose Mindscapes you visit, you can't have stabbed all of them."

Mukuro smirked, "Of course not, that would take too much time and effort. However, even before I tried to possess you I couldn't enter your Mindscape and until now I'd been too busy to seek you out."

"How unfortunate," I made sure the sarcasm was evident, "Now why don't you leave me alone, and go back to whatever it is you do when not invading peoples' Mindscapes."

"In due time Hisoka Yuzuki, but I have a few questions of my own," the heterochromatic boy said and I was instantly on guard, "How is it you could avoid being possessed? And why could I only access your Mindscape after that failed possession?"

I shrugged utterly clueless, "I don't know, why don't you tell me?"

Mukuro laughed and it sounded unnervingly genuine, "If I knew there would be no need for this questioning. However," his voice grew deadly serious as he continued, "I have a theory. When I attempted to possess you I felt the presence of your mind, and easily found what I needed to take over your body. By rights you should have been under my control, but something dampened the effect. And do you know what I found?" I shook my head; heart pounding against my ribs, "I discovered the presence of a second consciousness, so similar to your own that it could have passed for yours. There were some differences though; this other presence was faint and distinctly male. So, would you care to tell me about this Hisoka Arashi now?"

I balled my fists and glared at the intruder, "I told you never to speak his name again!" I yelled leaping at Mukuro. With no effort he jumped from the chair, which promptly disappeared. A fierce wind had picked up forcing the grass into a wild dance, and tugging at my clothes and hair. Mukuro wasn't fairing much better. Despite the strange wind, and the force with which it blew I lunged towards my uninvited guest. He dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding a last minute kick I'd thrown at him. Mukuro's bearing immediately changed from relaxed to battle-ready. He materialized a trident, and got ready to fight.

"So, your emotions play a key part in the state of your Mindscape," Mukuro commented. I glared and dashed forward. With no hesitation my opponent tapped the ground with his trident. The ground beneath me rumbled and swayed causing me to fall. I knew that this was an illusion, but for some reason it was realer than it had been last time. Perhaps it was because dreams always seemed to be more realistic than reality in that surreal aspect that they had. Or it might have something to do with the fact that Mukuro had invaded my mind. Regardless of the reason I stood and began my assault once more. When I drew close enough I leapt over the heterochromatic boy, and once I'd landed I spun; launching a kick as I did. The blow connected, but it didn't do much other than winding him.

"Not bad Hisoka Yuzuki, but I expected better from one of the sevens," Mukuro taunted.

I snarled, "I haven't even begun to fight yet, and you can bet that when I do you'll regret ever taunting me!"

Without waiting to hear another taunt from my opponent I jumped at him. He dodged to the side while swinging his trident at me in a sweeping arc. I cartwheeled out of the way before skidding to a halt and eyeing my opponent carefully. There was no doubt that Mukuro was a skilled fighter, even if this place was just in my mind and he wasn't really here. Any strategy I made would have to account for the reach he had with his trident, and his other skills which I had no doubt he could access even within my mind. With those thoughts in play I rushed at my opponent keeping as low as I could. Mukuro tried to sweep my legs out from under me, but I'd anticipated that and flipped backwards. I caught a brief look of surprise in his mismatched eyes before my foot connected with his jaw and sent him flying backwards. I landed neatly keeping my eyes open for any signs of trickery. But it appeared that I had caught my foe off guard and prevented him from creating an illusion.

"Kufufu, much better," Mukuro said, "Sadly our little duel will have to be cut short this time. Arrivederci Hisoka Yuzuki. Perhaps next time you'll finally tell me about your connection to Hisoka Arashi."

With an animalistic cry I dove at the heterochromatic boy. Before I could connect the field started to fade out, and Mukuro disappeared with it. As I looked around confused and beyond frustrated I heard a voice.

 _"Yuzuki-nee, get up. We have to get ready for school,"_ the voice said; it sounded familiar but I didn't know why, _"Do you want to be bitten to death?"_

With that being said I felt a sharp prod to my side, and then I started to fall.

 **Me: Well there's Chapter Nineteen for all of you out there that are still reading this. I doubt that this is longer than any of the previous chapters, but I wanted to keep Mukuro's dream visit as short as possible. After all I'm pretty sure this will be a reoccurring thing now. Also before I get too far I have a question for all you readers. It revolves around the fact that I haven't used all of the episodes from the anime in this story, and so I was wondering if you'd like me to make a side story with those episodes?**

 **Yuzuki: Meaning you could see my meeting with Bianchi, Haru, Lambo and other things like that that Cloud hasn't put into her writing.**

 **Me: Honestly, when I first set out to write this fanfiction I was planning on using every single episode, but then the Daily Life arc just bored me to death like it always does. I respect the need to introduce the characters, but it's just way too slow for me. But if you'd like to see the episodes I left out please let me know.**

 **Yuzuki: Yes, that would be greatly appreciated. Now since that's out of the way I have a couple things to say as well. First guesses are still open as to the identity of who I bumped into, and like Cloud said all that time ago this person is very essential to the plot of things. Also keep the guesses coming for the identities of the people who lent my brother a hand with Shamal by calling in the favors.**

 **Arashi: Those guesses would be very much appreciated and welcomed by all of us. Also, Cloud I have a question.**

 **Me: Oh, I'm all ears.**

 **Arashi: Just why did you allow Mukuro to enter my sister's dreams?**

 **Me: Hmmm… well, I remembered some things that Mukuro was capable of doing and since he wasn't able to possess her I figured this would be the next best thing to keep things a little interesting during the next daily life arc bit. Speaking of I think it's time for me to explain in depth just why Mukuro wasn't able to possess Yuzuki… if I haven't done so already.**

 **Yuzuki: Well, even if you have…**

 **Arashi: A refresher is always nice.**

 **Me: Well, then here goes nothing. *clears throat* So as Mukuro said in this chapter he should have been able to possess my wonderful OC, but couldn't due to a similar presence he felt in her mind. See my thoughts wandered while I was writing the Kokuyo arc and I got to thinking what would happen if Mukuro tried to possess a twin? And then I remembered that twins share a special connection regardless of what others might say, and I also remembered reading somewhere that the wavelengths and thought patterns of twins are very similar but also different.**

 **Arashi: I think I understand now. Yuzuki and I have similar thoughts, and our mental wavelengths are so similar that Mukuro was trying to, essentially, possess two people without realizing it.**

 **Me: Bingo. But I also wondered if Mukuro had succeeded what would happen to you, Arashi. As you were all the way over in Italy it would be extremely difficult for him to accomplish that. Not only that, but would you have reacted normally or would the possession have done something to worsen your sickness. Since I doubt even Mukuro has the skill to possess someone miles away (at least in the present, since I just remembered something about the future arc) I settled on having him try and fail to possess Yuzuki.**

 **Yuzuki: Which unfortunately clued him in a little on what I was, and still am, for the time being, hiding from my friends. That also made him more interested in me as well.**

 **Me: Yeah… sorry about that. But it was during that moment why I decided on that course of action that I was going to have the failed possession do something else. Hence, Mukuro can now walk in your dreams because he opened up a connection with you since Arashi's wavelengths protected you from that fate, and yours him in return.**

 **Arashi: Hopefully that wasn't confusing to you readers. Anyways since none of the canon characters or other OCs are here I'll say the disclaimer. CloudSkylark18 doesn't own KHR, but she owns all of her OCs and the plot when it revolves around them.**

 **Me: Thanks so much Arashi-kun. And thanks to all you readers out there who have come this far with me. Please leave a review in the box below, and I'll see you all later. Sayonara for now.**


	21. Arashi's First Day

Arashi's First Day

~Arashi's POV~

When I awoke on the day that would forever decide the rest of my life I found my sister thrashing in her sleep. A look of rage contorted her face, and my heart began pounding. Whatever, Yuzuki was dreaming about was making her really upset. A particularly violent thrash brought her dangerously close to the edge of her bed. Worry flooded my being as I walked over to her. I lightly shook her shoulder, while at the same time trying to push her away from the edge. I narrowly avoided her arm as it flew towards me. Once I was certain that my twin was safe from falling off the bed I gently shook her shoulder again.

My voice was soft as I spoke, "Yuzuki-nee, get up. We have to get ready for school," Yuzuki shifted a little bit but remained asleep, "Do you want to be bitten to death?" I asked. My sister's angry look faded away as she shifted again. Her eyes fluttered open, blurry with sleep. With a yawn Yuzuki slowly sat up and looked around before her gaze landed on me.

"Morning," my sister said with a stretch, "What time is it?" before I could answer my sister's blue-gray eyes landed on the alarm clock, "Crap, we're gonna be late!"

I smiled fondly as she ran around the room desperately trying to get ready as quickly as possible, yet still look presentable. Still I couldn't shake the feeling that something other than a possible detention was weighing on her mind.

~Yuzuki's POV~

It had thankfully only taken a few minutes for me to get dressed, and luckily Arashi and I had been able to get breakfast. After all, it wouldn't due to end up running to school with a piece of toast hanging from our mouths; that'd be way too cliché and embarrassing. Even though Arashi and I weren't going to be late I still mentally cursed Mukuro for showing up in my mind since it seemed that activity in the Mindscape transferred over to real life, which meant that it was like the fight we'd started had really happened. So, I was extremely tired which just made me even angrier with the heterochromatic boy.

"Hey, Yuzuki-nee are you okay?" Arashi's voice snapped me back into the present. I looked over at my twin and nodded.

"Yep, I'm perfectly fine Arashi," I made my voice as reassuring as possible while stifling a yawn. My brother didn't look convinced, but he decided not to press the issue; at least for now. As we continued on towards Namimori Middle I contemplated telling my brother about what had transpired last night, but two things stopped me from doing so. The first was that I could tell that my twin was decidedly nervous about his first day at the school; which was understandable since he hadn't been there last year. I could already hear the curious questions from each of my, or rather our, classmates now. While, telling my brother about Mukuro would ease my burden it would only increase his and there was no way I was going to do something like that to Arashi.

But even with that it was the second reason that really made me stay quiet. Mukuro had no knowledge of my brother other than his name. It actually kind of shocked me that he hadn't made the connection yet.

 _'Maybe he has though,'_ I struggled to keep my face straight as my mind travelled down this path, _'What if he's just toying with me? Hisoka isn't that common of a last name, and Arashi and I are both in middle school. He has to be slightly suspicious of this all, and with the same last name there's only so many conclusions that jerk can jump to.'_

I shook myself and decided to focus on one thing at a time. First, I'd do my best to help Arashi get through the day. After that… well, that's when I could worry about how much Mukuro might know about my brother and what he might do with that information. So with my priorities straightened out I placed a comforting hand on my brother's shoulder, and felt some of the tension leave my twin's body. He sent me a grateful look and I smiled back at him.

~Elsewhere; Third Person POV~

Two young men stood outside the shop looking in the window. One item caught their eye and they sent a look at one another.

"That's the one right?" the first asked examining it from every possible angle. The other nodded, and reached in his pocket to make sure the packet with the money was still there. Satisfied with its safety he tapped the other on the shoulder.

"C'mon let's get this over with," he said. The first male nodded, and entered the shop with the other. While his friend went to flag down a clerk he continued his observation of the item now that he had a better view of it. He still had no idea why his technical boss wanted this particular item, but he knew better than to question the relevance of the subject. His colleague returned with the clerk and the transaction was quickly made. Then the two males left the store.

"Say, do you have any idea why the boss wanted this?" the first guy asked, "It just… well, it seems kind of strange that he'd ask us to get this out of the blue for him."

"I think the only one who knows is the second-in-command," the second guy replied, "and I don't plan on asking any time soon. Besides, we'll be lucky if we manage to avoid retribution if we got the wrong one."

The first male shivered, "True… ugh now I'm paranoid. Think we should take another look just to be sure?"

"I doubt we got the wrong one… but now I'm not so sure," the other said sighing, "Alright then one last check and then we have to get moving otherwise we'll be late."

With that he opened the bag and took out the item within and breathed out a sigh of relief. With that confirmation they put the object away and headed towards their destination once more.

~At School; Arashi's POV~

I stood outside the door; any moment now it would open and I would be ushered inside to meet my classmates. Some of them were Yuzuki's friends, and just thinking of that made me even more nervous than I'd been before. I had to wonder if this was how Yuzuki felt the day she first started her middle school career. I shifted slightly trying to stifle my growing sense of unease. Unfortunately just as I was beginning to calm down I felt a chill run up my spine as someone's gaze bored into me. I swallowed, and forced myself to stand still. Something about this situation reminded me of a predator-prey situation. Whoever was glaring at me meant business, and I wasn't fool enough to antagonize them… or at least I thought I wasn't.

Footsteps slowly drew closer to me, and I forced myself not to shiver but the fear bubbling up didn't allow me to remain still. Blood was roaring through my ears as I tried to think rationally. This person couldn't hurt me; we were in school after all. They probably just wanted to know what I was doing out of class. But nothing I thought convinced me that I was safe.

"Herbivore," a cold voice said from behind me and the last of my resolve crumpled, "what are you doing out of class? Moreover, a female student wearing the male uniform is prohibited by the rules."

 _'What's this guy going on about? I'm an omnivore thank you very much,'_ I thought indignantly, _'I have half a min- wait did he say female student? Is this one of Yuzuki's friends? Does he think I'm her? But she never mentioned a friend that calls others herbivores… has she?'_

My thoughts were interrupted by the boy behind me, "I'll bite you to death."

"Huh?" was my brilliant response as I slowly turned around. The stranger's eyes blazed with a silver light; leaving me utterly terrified. I was almost too scared to move, but thankfully my self-preservation instincts kicked in and I dove to the side as something was swung at me. With wide eyes I quickly pulled myself up and took in my attacker with fresh eyes. He had a look on his face that was equal parts irritation and respect. I tensed as the boy turned towards me. He held his arms in an offensive stance, and I could see that he held weapons.

 _'Shouldn't something like that be banned by the school rules?'_ I asked silently. Then again if this person was who I suspected he was the rules didn't apply to him. My opponent lifted his tonfas in a threatening manner (not that he needed anything to make him scarier), and I quickly ran through my options. I could stay and try to fight him, but that would likely end with me getting into trouble… along with my sister. I could probably ignore him, but I might end up regretting that more than fighting. Which left me with only one option… run!

My course of action determined I pulled a feint, and the boy made to block. However, he felt nothing connect as I spun in place and took off. I could feel an aura of anger flare up behind me; it was extremely suffocating especially when a murderous intent mingled with the anger. The last of my rational thoughts fled from my mind as my flight instincts took over; pushing me to fly through the school and find a safe place to hide.

~Meanwhile with Yuzuki; Yuzuki's POV~

The teacher had just finished announcing that a new student, my brother (though that wasn't a detail anyone knew), would be joining us. Throughout the entire time he was talking I did my best to listen, and not seem suspicious. However, just as the teacher went to open the door I felt an intense fear wash over me. Something was wrong, and not with me but with my brother. A feeling of dread slowly crept up on me, and though I tried to imagine that it was nothing the absence of my twin beyond the open door crushed that feeble hope. There was no conscious thought as I stood and made my way to the door, and out into the hall.

The voice of my teacher was dim in my ears. All I could think of was finding my brother and figuring out what had filled him with fear. With that as my driving force I immediately began running through the school.

~In the Classroom; Third Person POV~

Tsuna looked after Yuzuki with concern. When the teacher had opened the door to reveal an empty hallway his friend's face had gone pale. The dark haired girl had then stood and made her way to the door robotically.

"Miss Hisoka please return to your seat," the teacher said, but Yuzuki heard none of it. She strode out of the room before breaking into a run. The concern for his friend grew, but the brunet was unsure whether he should go after Yuzuki or remain in class. Before he could decide a pain erupted from the back of his head and his face got up close and personal with his desk.

"Reborn! What was that for?" Tsuna asked as he lifted his head up.

"Dame-Tsuna a boss always pays attention to his subordinates, and offers them help if a problem arises," Reborn said.

"I'm not a boss, and Yuzuki is just a friend!" Tsuna protested. But the brunet still stood and headed over to the door. He heard the teacher say something, but he paid no attention to the words spoken. As he picked up the pace he heard someone following him, or rather two someones.

"Gokudera-kun, Yamamoto what are you two doing?" Tsuna called back over his shoulder.

"You're going after Yuzuki right?" Yamamoto asked getting a nod from his friend, "We're going to help her too."

"Speak for yourself baseball-idiot," Gokudera huffed, "I'm just going so that the Tenth won't have to lift a finger."

Tsuna felt a sweatdrop roll down his face, but he couldn't shake the gratitude he felt with them having followed him to help Yuzuki.

~In the Halls; Arashi's POV~

I was still running. I could hear my heart pulsing; the blood was roaring through my ears, but it wasn't able to drown out the sound of the one chasing me. I still had no idea what this boy's problem was, though I wasn't about to just stop and ask him either. As my feet hit the floor my eyes swept over the path before me. So far all of hall I was in was devoid of any sort of escape route or possible hiding spot. Of course hiding wouldn't be of any use right now since my pursuer was right on my heels. The bloodlust that surrounded him grew stronger the longer I stayed ahead of him, but that just spurred me to move faster. Regardless of my will I could tell that I was slowly losing energy.

I blamed most of that on the sickness I contracted; my stamina was much lower than it had been before I'd been forced to keep my physical exertions to a minimum. But I could rage about past things later… if I could survive the present that is. Finally I noticed that the hall opened up on the left, and I was quick to change my course. I forced myself to pick up the pace when I saw a pair of doors at the end of the passageway. I had to push a sense of relief away as the doors grew closer; after all I wasn't out of the woods yet. The person behind me made that very clear barely missing me when he swung a tonfa my way.

I yelped lightly at the tug of wind that followed the near miss. I threw all of my weight into the door causing it to slam into the wall on the other side. I squinted as light assaulted my eyes. A faint breeze tugged at my hair as I pushed onward. When my eyes had finally adjusted to the difference in brightness I glanced around looking for a way out. My heart sank when I realized that I'd ended up outside in the sports' field. This meant that there was a wall surrounding the entire length of it blocking all routes of escape. With this realization I skidded to a halt spinning around to face the one who'd been chasing me.

"Finally ready to accept your fate, herbivore?" the boy asked sending me an unnerving grin. I swallowed thickly and settled into a poor fighting stance. My opponent sent me a mixed look, which only solidified my suspicions. This boy was Hibari Kyoya; the one who supposedly had it out for my sister. Well, after today there was no ' _supposedly_ ' about it. I wasn't given a chance to reply as Hibari lunged at me. With no alternative I back stepped. The unnerving grin had returned to my opponents face, but now it was a hundred times worse. Even as I continued to dodge I could tell that this wasn't going to be much of a fight; likely this would turn into more of a slaughter with me on the short end of the stick.

I danced to the side, but it wasn't enough to completely avoid the blow. I winced and bit my lip to hold back the pained cry that threatened to escape my throat. My entire upper arm felt numb, but thankfully it didn't feel like anything was broken. But now my heart was pounding furiously against my chest. The adrenaline that traveled through my veins gave me a boost, but even with it I was no match for this fearsome person before me. As if to solidify my fears the onslaught that followed burned away at the rush my blood had carried through my body.

My vision began to swim a little and my dodges became mere stumbles. My opponent took notice of this, and pressed his advantage. I clumsily danced to the side, and earned a blow to the ribs for my trouble. I grit my teeth, and felt a few tears spring to my eyes from the pain. Hibari raised his tonfas for another strike, but something shifted; like he was distracted by something. As he brought down his weapons I was dimly able to hear the quick footsteps of someone running. I closed my eyes bracing myself for the finishing blow, but I felt nothing; though I heard the sound of metal hitting something soft. I cracked open my eyes and found my sister standing in between me and the head of the Disciplinary Committee.

"Nee-san…" I trailed off unsure how to finish that sentence. On one hand I was grateful for her intervention, but on the other… I was tired of her protecting me. Still I couldn't deny that her timing was impeccable, even if I now wanted to slug Hibari for hurting her.

"Don't worry about a thing Arashi," Yuzuki said; her eyes never leaving her opponent, "I have everything under control."

~Slightly Before; Yuzuki's POV~

The sights around me were blurred as I dashed through the school. My thoughts were filled with only one thing as my feet pounded on the ground; find Arashi. I had originally planned on checking the roof, but if Arashi was in some kind of trouble I doubt he'd head for the roof since there was no chance of escape from there. That left a few classrooms, and outside as likely places my brother would be.

' _Hold on Arashi, I'm coming!_ ' I thought desperately as I ran. I was so focused on the task at hand that I almost didn't notice what was going on outside. Thankfully, my peripheral vision was quick to pick it up and I slowed a little. My eyes went wide when I saw what was happening; my brother was engaged in combat with Hibari. Arashi was in no condition to fight Hibari… or most people for that matter; he'd only just been cured and hadn't rebuilt his stamina or strength yet. I only realized that I was moving again when I saw the doors leading outside in front of me. With no hesitation I barreled through them and out into the field. It wasn't hard to see that my brother was on his last legs, or that Hibari wasn't about to show any mercy.

I briefly wondered why Hibari was bothering with my brother, but I pushed that question away as I saw my brother's foe ready the final strike. As I grew closer Hibari's stance briefly wavered; shifting ever so slightly to avoid an attack from behind. Which meant that he'd heard me, but was more concerned with my twin at the moment. As the silver flash of Hibari's weapons came down I pushed myself to get there. A dull 'thunk' and a feeling of immense pain alerted me to the fact that I had made it. I could feel the shock reverberating from the two, though Hibari's was quickly smothered by irritation.

"Nee-san…" I heard my brother say. He sounded unsure of what to say after that. I could sense his gratefulness, but there was also a slight bit of irritation mixed in with it. Both those were quickly overtaken by concern though. I forced myself to stand straighter and look Hibari in the eye before I spoke.

"Don't worry about a thing Arashi," I said still locked in a battle of wills with Hibari, "I have everything under control."

I wondered if I sounded confident because I sure didn't feel like it. Hibari's eyes were narrowed, but the emotion within them was a mystery to me. For a moment I thought I saw confusion, but it was swallowed by irritation so fast that I figured it was my imagination. My opponent raised his weapons threateningly, though it was overkill since his glare was more than enough to intimidate me.

"Herbivore, what do you think you're doing?" Hibari asked me. I forced myself to hold his gaze, but cursed silently when I trembled slightly.

"I'd think it was obvious. I'm protecting my brother," I responded. The ravenet subtly glanced from me to my brother and back. He said nothing, but that only made me more nervous. It also didn't help my nerves when the bloodlust slowly reached a new peak. I desperately looked around for some way to escape, but my plans fell short when I remembered my brother behind me. If I bolted now there was no guarantee that Hibari would follow me; instead he might target my brother. And if I tried to take Arashi with me both of us would likely wind up getting caught and 'bitten to death'. But just as I was about to lose hope I heard a very familiar voice.

"Yuzuki, are you okay?!" Tsuna's shout immediately caught my attention. I looked over at the school and saw my brunet friend standing there with Yamamoto and Gokudera.

"Tsuna? Yes, I'm fine, but what are you all doing here?" I called back as I refocused my attention on Hibari.

The silverette sent me a glare as he spoke, "Why you! The Tenth was worried about you, so you could at least show some gratitude!"

"Maa, maa there's no need to get so worked up over that right now," Yamamoto said; doing his best to ease some of the tension surrounding all of us, "We were all worried when you just left class like you did, so we came to help."

"So, these are the kind of friends you have nee-san," Arashi's voice sounded from behind me catching my friends' attention. For a moment nothing was said, but I expected Tsuna would have something to say.

"Eh?! Two Yuzuki's?!" and there it was. I rolled my eyes, and let out a slight sigh. Arashi, I could tell, was utterly confused by this reaction. He looked between me and Tsuna then sighed.

"Not quite right I'm afraid," my brother said, but further explanation was forced to be put on hold as I dodged a tonfa. I hadn't forgotten my opponent, but his attack still nearly caught me off guard. He'd been quiet the entire time, and hadn't once made a move so I'd thought he was bored or wanted some clarification. Now that he'd made to strike me I had a feeling that he'd merely been waiting for a moment to strike.

"Yuzuki!" Tsuna's voice was full of concern. I did my best to ignore my friend while still letting him know that I was fine and had things under control (even if I didn't really believe it myself).

"Tsuna I need you to do something for me," I called as I danced away from another blow, "Please get Arashi out of here. I promise I'll explain everything once I finish up here."

"Nee-san," Arashi protested, but I didn't spare him a look. I knew he was still upset with me butting in, and that he was also very worried about my safety but for now my biggest concern was making sure my brother was okay. And if that meant I had to deal with a certain carnivore then that's just what I'd have to do. As I subtly drew Hibari away from my twin and friends I was pleased to find that they were slowly dragging my brother to safety. I made a mental note to apologize to Arashi later as I sidestepped another swing. From the way my opponent was acting I got the feeling that I wouldn't be able to get out of this fight; leastways not like I'd done the past few times.

As the four boys slowly stepped into the school I saw a strange look on Tsuna's face. He was looking at my brother like he recognized him. But up 'til now Tsuna had only seen Arashi once, and that was when my twin had pretended to be me at our birthday party. Had Tsuna been able to tell that Arashi wasn't me back then? But if that were true why hadn't Tsuna said anything? Unfortunately I wasn't allowed to continue down this train of thought as Hibari lunged at me again. I grimaced as I jumped backwards narrowly avoiding what would've likely been a crippling blow. However, this time around I wasn't about to just dodge; not after Hibari had gone after my brother (even if it was an honest mistake).

Without giving my opponent a chance to recover I pushed off the ground and dashed at him. Hibari sent a feral grin my way as he swung his weapon at me. With no hesitation I leapt over my foe and sent a kick barreling at his head. I winced as my foot connected with metal, but I pushed the pain to the back of my mind as I ducked under the other tonfa. I moved in closer and sent a few punches as my opponent's mid-section. A few hit, but Hibari was able to dodge most of them. I was forced to backflip out of the way after Hibari managed to put enough distance between us allowing him to swing his tonfas. Now it was me who was on the defensive. I side-stepped, and slid behind my foe as he charged past me. I landed a solid kick to his back pushing him even farther forward.

I realized my mistake when Hibari spun around; all my attack had done was made him angrier than he already was which I didn't think was possible. I let out a yelp as I spun off to the side only to encounter a searing pain in my lower back. I sucked in a breath as tears sprang to my eyes. The agony of the strike travelled up my spine paralyzing me. Another blow struck while I was out of it; my chest aflame with white-hot pain I collapsed to the ground struggling just to breath. I let out a few ragged gasps, but those did little to ease the desire for air that my lungs craved. I was dimly aware of Hibari getting closer likely to deal the finishing blow. Just as he drew his arm back something flew off from the side landing in between us. Whatever it was suddenly exploded filling the area with smoke. As my oxygen depraved brain tried to make sense of everything I found myself being lifted off the ground.

"Hold on tight Yuzuki-san," I heard someone say, but I couldn't place them. The only thing I was sure of was that I was fairly safe right now. With that thought in mind I allowed myself to fall unconscious.

~Later; Arashi's POV~

After Tsuna and his friends helped me rescue my sister from the head of the disciplinary committee we'd taken Yuzuki to the nurse. We'd been told that she'd be fine, but she'd need to rest until the end of school. So, throughout the rest of the day I'd taken notes in the rest of our classes for my sister. When school was finally over I immediately headed over to the nurse's office, and was met with a strange sight. There were some strangers leaving the room. Confused and cautious I stayed hidden until I was sure they were gone. Something about them had set me on edge, but they looked normal… harmless even.

Regardless I made a mental note to keep an eye out for them in the future. Pushing them out of my mind for a minute I headed into the nurse's office to see my sister getting ready to push herself off the bed.

"Did you have a nice rest Yuzuki-nee?" I asked with a half-hearted attempt to make a joke. She smiled and chuckled slightly. I saw her wince subtly from the action; it would obviously take more than a day for her to recover from the blow she'd taken to the chest. Something caught my eye, and Yuzuki followed my gaze. A small box lay on the table.

"Do you know what that is?" I asked my sister only receiving a shake of a head from her, "It must have been put there sometime during the day since it wasn't here when I left after lunch. Did those two leave it here?"

"You mean Ben and Jenna?" my sister asked.

"We're those people that I saw leaving them? A boy and a girl both with brown hair and green eyes?" I asked. Yuzuki nodded.

"Yeah that's them, but I was awake when they came in," my sister said, "And I didn't notice either of them leaving anything behind after they left."

"So then who could have left this… whatever it is here?" I asked. Yuzuki shrugged and reached out for the box. I moved to stop her, but she already had it in her hands. I watched as she tilted the box in several different ways; trying to figure out what was hidden inside as well as if it could be considered a threat. Once she'd deemed it safe my sister slowly pried the box open only to freeze. Her eyes were wide; filled with shock. Curious and concerned I moved to my sister's side so I could inspect her _gift_ myself. When I saw the object I found myself freezing as well, and shared a look of confusion and shock with my twin.

"Is that…" I trailed off unsure of how to continue. My sister could only nod while staring at what the box contained. A beautiful silver chain from which hung a pretty silver pendant in the shape of a stalking tiger. Faux onyxs created the stripes while similar sapphires gleamed like eyes. The necklace was just as my sister had described from the first day she'd seen it at the jewelry story. As Yuzuki continued to look at the box's contents I found my eyes drifting to the small piece of paper that was held in place by the pendant. I reached out and grabbed the parchment and read what was on it; which was only my sister's name.

"This necklace is your's now nee-san," I said flashing the note at her, "Someone must care about you a good deal."

"I… suppose so, but I don't feel right accepting this. Even more so since I don't know who could have possibly left this for me," my sister said.

"It belongs to you now so I won't try to tell you what to do with it, but the fact remains that we don't have any way of returning this. The person who left it made sure of it," I stated, "However, there may be a way to figure out who gave this to you."

"You want me to wear it don't you," it was more of a statement than a question but I nodded all the same.

"Exactly, wearing this might get a reaction out of someone that you know. So, then once you know who the gift giver is you can decide whether to give it back or to keep it," Yuzuki nodded at my observation, but I could tell she was concerned about the chance of not finding her admirer, "Don't worry about that right now though. Instead I think you should worry about the school work you'll have to do when we get home, but don't worry I took notes for you so you'll have plenty to work with."

My sister sent me a playful glare as she closed the box and pocketed it. With a quick thank you to the nurse we took our leave and began our trek home. At least I couldn't say that things had been boring the first day of school. This reminded me that we'd have a lot of explaining to do where Yuzuki's friends were concerned, but like the matter with the necklace it could wait for a while.

 **Me: Before I get too far I have one thing to say. I'm so sorry everyone. I know it's been so long since I lasted updated, and there's really no excuse for it. However, and this is the utter truth, my laptop's keyboard was glitching out super hard. I couldn't use the top or bottom rows of the keys. Though I also admit that I found it kind of difficult to focus on this fanfiction a bit, but only because we have to get through another daily life arc before the next big bit of action.**

 **Yuzuki: You really don't like the daily life arcs do you?**

 **Me: Not especially, though I do respect the need for them. Introducing characters is very important, and developing them even more so. My real problem is really the lack of action within them. I know that's how daily life is supposed to be, but I like epic action scenes complete with amazing fighting and awesome moves.**

 **Arashi: Understandable since most anime you watch is shonen.**

 **Ben: That and she's addicted to super hero films.**

 **Jenna: Not to mention her fantasy book favorites.**

 **Me: None of which I deny. However, I have watched my share of shojo anime, and princess movies. I suppose I can't balance out my fantasy novels though since I can't get into non-fiction. Anyways enough about my anime, movie, and book preferences.**

 **Yuzuki: Yes, we should be moving on. Once again Cloud would like to apologize for the wait, and will try not to let it happen again, though she makes no guarantees.**

 **Me: That is indeed true. And I will be taking care of the disclaimer this time around. I, CloudSkylark18 do not own KHR. If I did I probably wouldn't be on fanfiction writing stories for it… but maybe I would. Regardless, KHR is property of Akira Amano who is not me and so I do not own said anime. With that being said I hope you join me for the next chapter, which hopefully won't take as long to get out as this one. Until then ja ne.**

 **Yuzuki: Hope to see you all again, but for now bye!**

 **Arashi: It was a pleasure to be here, until next time minna.**

 **Ben: Well, since this wasn't a complete waste of time I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and that you'll stick with this story until the end… whenever, that is. Until that time, bye for now.**

 **Jenna: Sayonara minna, until we meet again.**


	22. Tsuna Kills a Guy and Truth

Tsuna _Kills_ a Guy and Truth

~Yuzuki's POV~

Despite having promised Tsuna and the others an explanation about Arashi and his connection to me I'd yet to give it to them. While things had quieted down after my twin's initial arrival it had still been hectic. School work had become even more demanding with us being second years now. Not only that, but I was still trying to figure out who could have possibly given me that tiger necklace. However, I determined that today would be the day that I explained things to my friends, which was why I was currently on my way to Tsuna's house with Arashi in tow.

"So, how do you think they'll take it?" Arashi asked. I shrugged.

"Honestly, it wouldn't shock me if they took it badly. Still, it would be wrong not to say anything," I replied, "Maybe they'll hate me for keeping it a secret, but as a friend it would be even worse not to explain things now that they know."

My brother nodded, "You're right nee-san. But if they end up blowing things out of proportion, or anything of the sort then they don't deserve to have you as a friend."

I smiled, but it didn't quite reach my eyes. Arashi made a good point, but at the same time… these people were the first friends- real friends- I'd had in a long time. So, it'd hurt if they decided to cut ties with me. But I couldn't just pretend that I hadn't been hiding my twin's existence from them. After all Fuuta had pretty much said as much with my rank of 'having a big secret' or whatever it was that he'd ranked me in.

"So, remind me what all you told my friends," I said glancing at my brother. Arashi hummed slightly before speaking.

"Well, I couldn't say much," my brother said, "After all there wasn't a whole lot of time, and I was too worried about you. But I told them that you had no choice, but to keep my existence a secret. Other than that I told them that we'd explain everything in more detail when we got the chance."

I nodded, "By the way did Tsuna say anything to you?"

"Now that you mention it he did say something," Arashi answered, "I completely forgot about it, but he said that he felt like he knew me."

"I see… so I didn't imagine that look he gave you," I said causing my twin to tilt his head in confusion, "It was when he was taking you back inside the school with Gokudera and Yamamoto. I thought he might have remembered seeing you at our birthday."

"But… I was pretending to be you," Arashi said, "What makes you think that he knew I wasn't you then?"

I paused for a minute as I thought back to when Tsuna had fought Mukuro at Kokuyo Land. He'd been able to tell that Gokudera and Bianchi were possessed by the heterochromatic boy. It wouldn't be impossible for him to be able to realize that Arashi and I weren't the same person.

"I told you about the fight at Kokuyo Land, right?" I asked getting a nod from my brother, "Well, during the fight, that guy we fought possessed Bianchi and Gokudera and somehow Tsuna was able to tell. So, if he could tell something like that then it wouldn't be too farfetched to believe he could tell us apart as well."

"I guess that makes sense," my brother hummed, "Well, we can worry about that when we get to Tsuna's place."

I nodded, my nerves flaring up as we drew closer to my friend's house. As we approached the modest two-story building Tsuna's mother walked out. From the way she was acting I figured that she was probably going shopping. We turned to enter the yard and I took a deep breath to steel myself, then Arashi and I made our way to the door. My brother knocked, but there was no answer. I twisted the handle and the door swung open.

"Nee-san, that's kind of rude don't you think?" Arashi asked giving me a flat stare.

"Maybe so, but Sawada-san wouldn't leave the door unlocked if no one was home," I replied sheepishly, "Which means that Tsuna's probably upstairs."

Arashi sighed, but didn't argue further. I followed my brother into the house, removing my shoes at the door before climbing the steps. As we neared the top we heard quite a few voices.

"Calm down," Yamamoto seemed to be trying to put someone at ease, "You don't remember what happened, right?"

Tsuna's sobbing followed the baseball star's words. I shared a look with my brother. It was clear that he was just as confused as I was. Had something happened to Tsuna?

"Besides, is this guy really dead?" Gokudera's voice sounded over Tsuna. Someone was dead?

"There's some dead guy in your friend's room?" Arashi's voice echoed my thoughts. The two of us shared another look before quickly ascending the rest of the steps. At the top we crossed the floor to Tsuna's room and peeked in. Yamamoto and Gokudera stood with their backs to us with Tsuna just beyond them tears running down his face. Closer to the window was Haru, looking just as distraught as Tsuna. Reborn was standing on Tsuna's desk; one of the two people seemingly unconcerned with what was going on. The other was a guy lying on Tsuna's bed; neither my brother nor I could tell what he looked like from the angle we were at.

Gokudera's voice startled me out my observation, "If you don't wake up, I'm gonna blow you to pieces!"

As he spoke he lifted a stick of dynamite. For a brief moment I wondered if he'd actually use it, then remembered who I was talking about.

"He moved!" Tsuna shrieked suddenly as Haru freaked out beside him.

"An ambulance-" the brunette girl began searching her pockets for her phone. Just as she pulled it out and went to place the call Reborn spoke up.

"There's no need. I brought a doctor," the hitman said. It was only then that I realized he had moved, and was now dragging someone behind him. No one noticed us; too focused on Reborn and his… guest.

"A doctor? Could it be…" Tsuna trailed off. I internally groaned as my faced morphed into one of disgust.

"Yeah," Reborn replied to Tsuna dragging the man into view, "It's Doctor Shamal."

"And he's drunk…" Tsuna said, his face a mix of disbelief and worry. Even without Tsuna's comment it wouldn't have been hard to tell that he was intoxicated just from the smell. Suddenly without warning the good doctor stood, a hand flying to the side of his head.

"What is it? I had a date with a fancy little senorita," Shamal said sounding utterly disappointed. Honestly, if it weren't for the fact that he'd helped my brother get better I would have decked him then and there.

"More importantly," Tsuna said coming up to the man, "will you take a look at him?!"

With a brief reply Shamal moved past Tsuna. He stopped in front of Haru, and tried to kiss her. However, the move was not appreciated in the least, and Shamal got nothing but a punch to the face for his troubles.

"What are you trying to do?!" Haru shouted at the man. Shamal stood clutching at his face.

"With that much energy, he'll be fine," the doctor said. A hand on my shoulder distracted me from the proceedings within the room. I looked back at my brother questioningly.

"Yuzuki-nee, I could be wrong, but doesn't this guy only treat women?" my brother asked. I jolted as the realization hit me. After hearing that Shamal had treated my brother I'd forgotten that he normally insisted on only treating women.

"Yeah, you're right," I replied, "You were an exception because some people called in favors. I'd forgotten about that for a while there."

While my brother and I had been talking the others had once again been told that Shamal only treated women. I considered saying something, but decided against it to avoid drawing the man's attention. Currently, the others were conducting a small examination of the man; checking his pupils for dilation, to see if he was breathing, and his heart for a beat. Arashi and I took the opportunity to sneak into the room unnoticed by the others. Once we situated ourselves we were able to see the man clearly.

He was dressed in dark clothes which led me to believe that he might be a burglar. The black stocking cap on his head covered most of his hair, but what could be seen was brown; about the same shade as Tsuna's. His mouth was slightly open, and his eyes stared sightlessly at the ceiling. The results after the amateur testing revealed that the man was… dead. With that having been determined Shamal left.

~Arashi's POV~

I watched Yuzuki relax as Shamal left the room. It was obvious she'd been on edge, readying herself to hit the man if he came onto her. Before I could even begin to reassure her Tsuna's cry tore through the room.

"My life really is over!" the brunet screamed.

"So… you really did kill someone," Yuzuki spoke up catching everyone's attention, "I'd really appreciate an explanation."

That only had Tsuna freaking out more, "Eh?! Yuzuki and Arashi are here too! Why me?!"

"Relax," Reborn's voice sliced through the shouts, "I brought someone else."

The infant sent Tsuna a thumbs-up, but I didn't think any of us were going to be too thrilled with whoever, it was. Yuzuki suddenly shivered beside me, and I sent her a concerned look. She opened her mouth, probably to reassure me, but wasn't able to say anything as the mystery person leaped through the window. Yuzuki stiffened as her eyes darted around looking for a possible escape route. It was easy for me to tell why. Reborn's 'someone else' was none other than Hibari Kyoya.

"Hey," the Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee said as though he hadn't just come through the window. Thankfully his eyes were fixed on the people in front of him; ignoring my sister and I who were off to the side.

"H-Hibari-san," Tsuna managed to get out. The boy in question stood before speaking.

"I came so the kid would owe me a favor. It's a trade-off," Hibari turned his attention to the guy on Tsuna's bed, "I can take care of this for you."

Needless to say everyone was both shocked and confused, Tsuna just put it to words, "W-What are you saying?!"

Instead of Hibari replying it was Reborn, "He's going to make it so this will never be found by anyone. It'll be like the crime never happened."

"That's not good in so many ways!" Tsuna cried out more hysterical than ever… if such a thing were possible. Hibari turned and leapt to the windowsill where he paused looking back over his shoulder.

"Then I'll send people from the Disciplinary Committee later," Hibari said. As he spoke I was sure I saw a grin, or at the very least a smirk. Yuzuki stiffened again as Hibari's eyes locked with hers, but before anything could happen Tsuna unknowingly prevented that from happening.

"The Disciplinary Committee makes things 'go away'?!" the brunet shrieked. The rest of us were just as shocked and disturbed as our friend. Instead of replying Hibari just turned away.

"See you," he said as he jumped out of the window. But as he disappeared from view I had to wonder if he was talking to the group as a whole or just one of us in particular.

~Yuzuki's POV~

The moment Hibari leapt away Tsuna ran to the window. Against better judgement I followed, but the prefect was already gone. To make matters worse Kyoko chose that moment to show up. While Reborn headed downstairs to fetch her the rest of us flew about in a panic trying to find some place to hide the body until Kyoko left or the Disciplinary Committee showed up. At some point someone knocked me upside the head, and I ended up careening into my brother sending us both tumbling to the ground. I was able to glimpse Yamamoto and Gokudera stuff the man in the closet through the tears before Arashi pushed me off of himself.

It wasn't a moment too soon as the closet door was no more than shut when Kyoko walked in. The rest of us tried to act normal, but it wasn't hard to see that we were failing. Arashi and I nodded a greeting to Kyoko as I massaged my temples; a headache waiting in the wings. My brother was clearly feeling it too, though it probably wasn't as bad. The others whispered among themselves as Kyoko sat on seemingly unconcerned with what they were saying. Suddenly Tsuna froze, terror etched into his features. But that was understandable since the guy's hand was sticking out of the closet.

It was then that Kyoko finally said something about everyone's odd behavior, "What's the matter, everyone?"

No sooner had she said that than the man's head fell from out of the closet as well. The fabric of his clothes rustled catching Kyoko's attention. Things seemed to happen in slow motion as the orange haired girl turned to look behind her. Thankfully at that moment Lambo and I-Pin soared through the open window.

"Wait, Lambo!" I-Pin shouted as she chased after the curly haired boy.

Lambo dodged heading for the bed, "Lambo-san didn't do anything wrong!"

I shared a look with Arashi, the both of us completely confused. Thankfully we weren't the only ones.

"What's the matter, you two?" Tsuna asked the two kids jumped around before landing on the small table in front of the brunet.

"Lambo do bad," I-Pin said, "The tickets."

"I didn't lose them! I put them in my hair!" Lambo said seemingly remembering something, "Lambo-san didn't so anything wrong!"

Then after saying his piece Lambo leapt out the window quickly followed by I-Pin. That left the rest of us looking after them utterly confused.

"What was all that?" Tsuna asked.

"Beats me," I said, "They didn't even…"

"Wait for anyone to offer a solution," Arashi finished for me.

"They're always so energetic," Kyoko said a slight smile on her face. Then she noticed the corpse. Thankfully, before she could say anything, Haru suddenly popped out of nowhere wearing one of her weird costumes. Said costume was a Herse of all things, and I hadn't even seen it lying around the room anywhere; I had to wonder where she kept them. The brunette girl tried to explain off the dead guy as a prop for a culture festival, and surprisingly Kyoko bought it.

"Nee-san," Arashi caught my attention, "how long do you think the charade will last? With 'Dead-kun' that is," my twin air-quoted Dead-kun.

I shrugged, "Not sure, though it'll probably last as long as Kyoko's here. Regardless, until 'Dead-kun' is taken care of we'll have to wait to speak with the others."

~Arashi's POV~

Before I could even think of voicing my agreement Kyoko's older brother suddenly appeared in Tsuna's doorway. He seemed rather pumped up… but from what Yuzuki had told me about him that was the norm.

"Sawada!" Ryohei shouted, "Join the boxing club!"

I rubbed my ears as my head started to pound. Yuzuki didn't look much better, though she'd been fighting a headache after getting bashed in the head earlier. It was only now that I remembered that my sister had also said our upperclassman was loud as well.

"Didn't you say that Tsuna refused to join the boxing club the last time Sasagawa-senpai asked him?" I asked, turning to my sister as I did.

Yuzuki nodded, "Yeah, but Sasagawa-senpai is very persistent. But then again Tsuna is very adamant about not joining the boxing club. I have a feeling this is going to become a standstill tug-o-war for a good long while."

We were brought out of our conversation when Kyoko left the room.

"Now's our chance to move the corpse," Tsuna said forgetting about Ryohei for a moment, "I mean, to put away 'I'm Dead-kun'."

"I don't know what it is, but I'll help," Ryohei said. Before anyone could do anything Lambo and I-Pin returned through the window. The two leapt around the room for a few moments before Lambo landed and pulled out a grenade.

"Lambo-san's counterattack!" the boy shouted as he threw the projectile. Tsuna, Gokudera and Yamamoto let out exclamations as the explosive hurtled towards them. Haru fell backwards breaking her costume. Yuzuki tackled me to the side, and for once I didn't mind being protected. And then there was Ryohei shouting about how this was extreme or something of the sort. The explosion filled the room with smoke causing us all to cough as we waited for it to clear. Once it did Haru pointed out something missing.

"The corpse isn't here," she said shaking. The rest of us, who knew what was going on, looked around in a panic trying to locate it.

"That explosion earlier must have done it," Reborn said drawing all our attention. With that in mind we all rushed towards the window and looked out. Yamamoto was the one who spotted it, and it could not have been in a worse spot; the back of a delivery truck.

"Well done, Yamamoto," Reborn praised the dark haired teen, "Your eyes have been trained well from baseball."

"I'm the one who's going to help the Tenth!" Gokudera growled turning it into a competition as he ran for the door. Ryohei followed him closely.

"I don't get it, but I'll help!" the boxing club Captain shouted. As the rest of the group followed them Yuzuki and I remained behind.

"Shouldn't we go after them?" I asked my twin. She shook her head.

"Those five will be fine," Yuzuki said with confidence, "They'll come back eventually; whether they get tired or manage to retrieve 'Dead-kun'. Besides Kyoko's still here and it'd be rude to leave her alone. Speaking of which I'll have to be sure and let Tsuna know that he was rude."

"Right, I guess those are good points," I said, "So then, when they get back we'll tell them about why I'm just now coming to school, right?"

Yuzuki nodded as Kyoko returned carrying a package with her. She set it down on Tsuna's desk before returning to her seat from earlier. For the next while the three of us simply sat and talked amongst ourselves.

~Later~

My sister and I waited for a good hour or so before Tsuna and the others returned. It had taken them a while to catch the delivery truck, which had ended up stopping at Takesushi to drop off a package for Yamamoto's father. After all the trouble Tsuna had gone to in order to reclaim the 'corpse' the brunet had then decided to go to the police instead. Thankfully 'Dead-kun' hadn't actually been dead. Instead he was a man named Moretti who could use a special skill that intentionally stopped his heart, making him appear to be dead. To be honest it was actually very impressive, though I think Tsuna could have done without the scare.

Our little group talked for quite some time about that little incident after Kyoko and Ryohei went home. Not long after they left Haru followed suit with the rest of us bidding her farewell. As all of this was going on I kept glancing at my sister trying to figure out when she was going to start explaining things to the others. Thankfully Tsuna solved that problem by asking a question.

~Yuzuki's POV~

"Ah, I've been meaning to ask but why are you and Arashi here Yuzuki?" I blinked at my friend's question. It wasn't that I had forgotten, but I was very nervous about how they'd all take it. However, I couldn't avoid the topic any longer without lying and that was something I didn't want to do.

"Well, you see…" I started glancing at my brother who gestured for me to continue, "My brother and I came here to give you that explanation we promised you."

The three boys looked between each other. It seemed like they hadn't been expecting that to be the reason. After all it had been some time since I'd made that promise to them.

Gokudera huffed, "About d*** time! Do you have any idea how long you've kept the Tenth waiting?!"

"Maa, maa getting angry won't change anything," Yamamoto said. Arashi nodded in agreement. My gaze drifted over the four boys. Gokudera was fuming, but that wasn't too unusual. Yamamoto had the easy-going smile that he always wore, but it was clear he was very interested in this conversation. Tsuna was giving me a look that seemed to say take your time; it also held a good amount of trust within the depths of his eyes. Then there was my brother; his eyes shining with support. I took a deep breath and began my explanation.

"My brother already told you that I had no choice, but to keep his existence a secret," I said, "At the time he wasn't able to tell you why. The fact of the matter is Arashi was sick with a strange illness. Our parents took him to several different doctors, but none of them had a clue what kind of sickness my brother had."

I let my words hang in the air. My three friends glanced between each other.

Arashi picked up where I left off, "Because of the nature of my sickness my parents pulled me out of school. Simply put, I'd randomly go into coughing fits; become very pale; break out in a sweat and once I even blacked out. Some of the doctors said that it was an illness caused by stress, but none of our family believed it; I'm not the kind of person who stresses about things."

I nodded, "That's true, Arashi's one of the calmest people I know. Anyways not long after my brother was pulled out of school my grades began to suffer, mostly because I was worried about Arashi. Most of my teachers told my parents that they should hire a tutor for me, but tutors require money and with Arashi as sick as he was we couldn't afford to waste money on something like that. So, our family decided to move instead."

"But isn't that kind of expensive?" Tsuna asked.

"True it is rather expensive," Arashi replied, "But in the long run it's much cheaper than paying a tutor for a couple sessions each month, especially with how much some of the tutors in Tokyo charge."

"Are they really that expensive?" Tsuna questioned.

I nodded, "The better they were at their job, the more money they charged. In any case we're not talking about those people," I said just wanting to get this over with. Taking pity on me Arashi spoke up.

"It was some time just before we finished our preparations to move here that our parents had heard of a doctor in Italy who specialized in rare diseases. They made arrangements for four of our family members to go to Italy in order to find this doctor and see if my illness was curable," my brother explained, "That was the reason that Yuzuki had to get a job, since our parents; Haruto and I were the four going to Italy. She needed it in order to pay for groceries and the like after all."

"Yes, and I'd like to thank you for the opportunity to work with you and your father Yamamoto," I said bowing as much as my sitting position would allow.

Yamamoto laughed, "It was fun working with you too, Yuzuki."

I smiled before becoming serious once again, "So, after securing a job at Takesushi and nearly getting killed by Hibari because of it my family left for Italy. Then not long after they got there the Kokuyo Land incident occurred, and let me tell you Arashi had plenty of questions for me to answer after he came home."

"Can you blame me Yuzuki-nee," my brother huffed, "I felt everything you did… not as strong sure, but it still hurt. Not to mention did a number on my nerves. Speaking of Yuzuki told me that the guy you fought possessed Gokudera and his sister, but you were able to tell that he had. And you told me that you thought you recognized me when you got me away from Hibari-san, right? So, is that really true?"

Tsuna nodded, "That's right, though I'm not sure how I did it. Was I wrong to think that I recognized you?"

"No," my brother said with a shake of his head, "you saw me before that moment, though you probably thought I was Yuzuki. It was very nice of you all to give my sister such wonderful gifts, I'm just sorry that I had to leave early."

"In short, Arashi and I switched places until his illness put a strain on him," I elaborated, "Meaning that Arashi was actually the person you sat with for the first portion of our birthday party, and that I was the one who came down with the sketch book."

"So, you two took us for fools?" Gokudera growled.

Arashi shook his head, "Not at all. Pulling that, for lack of better word, trick was the only way I was able to attend the party and meet you all. Also… did any of you happen to see anyone watching me that day?"

"I don't think so," Yamamoto replied. Gokudera only shook his head while grumbling under his breath. Tsuna had a look on his face that seemed to say that he might know something about what my brother was talking about. Despite that I wasn't about to ask.

"So, now you three know why I never said anything about Arashi," I said, "I know that everything I've said is a lot to take in, but I can promise you that it's the absolute truth. I also know that I have no right to ask this of you, but please don't tell anyone else unless you ask one of us first. Our parents have laid out a story saying that Arashi was home-schooled, which isn't a complete lie, but if the wrong people were to find out our parents would be in a lot of trouble."

"Yuzuki…" Tsuna started, but was cut off by Gokudera.

"Why should we lift a finger to help you? You betrayed the Tenth's trust," the silverette growled. I opened my mouth, but wasn't able to say anything; Arashi beat me to it.

"I can understand that your angry, but don't take it out on my sister," my brother said quietly, "She had no choice in the matter. If you need to blame anyone, blame me. It was because of me that Yuzuki had to lie to you; something she never wanted to do. So…"

"But you didn't have a choice either," Tsuna cut off Arashi, "You were sick, and your parents were trying to protect you. I don't think that any of you were to blame; you were all just doing what you thought you had to, to protect each other," my friend smiled here, "So, I won't say a word to anyone."

Yamamoto nodded in agreement, "Tsuna's right, don't you think Gokudera?"

"Well, if the Tenth is willing to move past this then I won't object," Gokudera huffed. I let out a relieved sigh; tension leaving my body. Arashi himself also looked rather relieved, though I don't know if it was for my sake or his own. We talked a little bit more before Arashi and I took our leave, and began the trek back to our house.

~EXTRA; Third Person POV~

"Ah, that reminds me Yuzuki," Tsuna said looking at the black haired girl. The girl hummed a questioning look in her blue-gray eyes.

"You mentioned a doctor in Italy who was knowledgeable in diseases," the brunet said, "Do you know their name?"

Yuzuki nodded as she slipped on her shoes, but said nothing. It was her brother that took pity on the three boys while he waited for his sister to finish getting ready.

"Yeah, but then I would think you'd all know it too," the dark haired boy said smiling, "He was here today after all. Though I suppose he wasn't all that helpful this time around."

With that being said Yuzuki stood and opened the door of the Sawada household. She turned and waved to her three friends as Arashi inclined his head to them. Then the two were gone, and heading home. This left Tsuna and his two friends to ponder over Arashi's words. The realization hit them all rather hard.

"He was talking about Dr. Shamal!" Tsuna practically shrieked, "But I thought he only treated women?!"

"You don't think…" Yamamoto trailed off sharing a look with his two friends.

"It's… the only explanation," Gokudera muttered.

"He must have thought Arashi was Yuzuki!" the three chorused. All the while Reborn watched them from the top of the stairs a smirk on his face.

* * *

 **Me: And done! Phew, I didn't think it'd take this long to get through this chapter. I hope none of the characters were too OOC, and that the ending wasn't rushed. In any case I hope you all enjoyed the little extra I threw in for you all; I guess it's a bit of a thank you to you all for continuing to read this FanFiction and being so willing to wait for each chapter.**

 **Yuzuki: Yes and the rest of us that make up the cast thank you as well. Also I pretty sure guesses are still being accepted for the identity of the person I bumped into all those chapters ago.**

 **Arashi: Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's ongoing still. Though I think the authoress will reveal it very soon.**

 **Me: Well… I might. Probably very close to the Varia arc. Also the identities of the two who called in favors to Shamal are still being accepted as well. In fact I think only one person has made any guesses about them and the person Yuzuki bumped into. Speaking of I'd like to thank Lyria Hart for leaving constant reviews to this story, and I hope that you're enjoying reading it as much as I am writing it.**

 **Ben: With that being said, CloudSkylark18 wants everyone to know that though she loves KHR she does not own it. That right belongs to Akira Amano.**

 **Jenna: However, she owns all her OCs and the general plot to this FanFiction where her OCs are concerned.**

 **Yuzuki: So, please leave a review in the box below and we'll all see you again for the next chapter.**

 **Arashi: Until next time, minna.**


	23. Author's Note

**_Author's Note_**

Hey everyone, just me CloudSkylark18. Now before you freak out _The Two Sides of the Wind_ is not being put on hiatus nor is it being discontinued. The reason I'm writing this author's note is just to ask you guys something... well, a couple things. So, with that having been said the questions are down below.

1) Okay, so the other day I started wondering about my OCs... more specifically the pairings I have in mind for them. Now I don't plan on changing them so there's no need to freak out about that, but I was just curious about who you would want to see them paired with if pairings were up in the air. If you'd like I could even put up a poll on my profile to make things easier.

2) There are some AU stories I'd like to write at some point for KHR and if I do write them would you like my OCs to show back up in them? And if you do would you want them to be main characters again or just side characters?

3) I've asked this before, but I'll re-ask it now; since I've left some episodes out would you like me to make a side series featuring those episodes so you can see how Yuzuki went about meeting the other characters? If enough people want it I'll start working on it after I finish this book.

4) There's a spin-off story that I plan to write for this book, just for fun mind you, and I was wondering if you guys would like to read it? Like with the side series this will be worked on after the main story.

Before I go on I just want to say that I know I've already asked a lot of questions about things that are happening in the book, and I've only really answered one of them. That being the identity of the Doctor Arashi, his parents and younger brother went to see; which was Shamal. That being said the other questions have yet to be answered, and I will restate them here in case you've forgotten along with some new ones as well.

5) Who do you all think Yuzuki bumped into on the first day of school. Keep in mind that I've now said this character is important to the plot, but I haven't said anything else about them. They could be a canon character (minus Tsuna) or another OC of mine. So please take a guess if you'd like.

6) Who are the mysterious people that called in favors for Shamal; it's why he treated Arashi even though Arashi is a boy. Mind you these people are known by Yuzuki, and as they could call in favors to Shamal must have Mafia ties. They are also likely very powerful individuals.

7) I'm sure you're all curious about the necklace that Yuzuki now has. I've actually based it loosely off of a necklace I own. Regardless of all that, who do you think gave Yuzuki that necklace?

8) And lastly for those of you who enjoyed the chapter with Mukuro entering Yuzuki's Mind/Dreamscape here's a question. Would you like a separate book to encompass all the times he shows up in Yuzuki's Mindscape? I still plan to put a few more into the actual story for each Daily Life Arc, but I don't know when the next one will show up. However, it won't be the next chapter so please bare with me until I figure out when the best time to put in the next Mindscape chapter will be.

So, with all that being said thank you for taking the time to read all of this. And I apologize to anyone that thought this was an actual update. So until next time, which should be Chapter Twenty-Two if I'm counting right, sayonara minna.


	24. Crashing a Cruise Vacation

Crashing a Cruise Vacation

~Yuzuki's POV~

It was a few days after our explanation that Arashi and I next hung out with Tsuna. Our parents had gone on a field trip with Haruto leaving my twin and me at home. We were just relaxing and watching some anime when there was a knock on the door. I paused the show and stood turning towards the entryway. Arashi had stood as well and had gone to open the door. From where I stood I couldn't see who was there, but it wasn't long before the visitor's identity was revealed.

"Ah, Yamamoto-san," Arashi said, "What are you doing here?"

Intrigued I shut the T.V. off and made my way over to the door. Yamamoto stood right outside a smile on his face, but he wasn't alone. Just behind him stood Haru, Lambo, I-Pin, Fuuta, Bianchi and Reborn.

"The kid invited us to go with him and told us to ask you two along as well," Yamamoto said in reply to my brother's question.

"Go where, exactly?" I asked utterly confused.

Reborn answered, "On a cruise to a South Sea island. Will you come?"

I shared a look with Arashi. It sounded tempting… oh who was I kidding it was tempting. Our parents were also going to be gone for a few more days, so it wasn't like they'd miss us. Not only that but it had been getting a little boring just sitting around at home. Arashi also seemed to be of the same mind as me.

"Yeah sure, we've got nothing better to do," I said, "So, when is this cruise?"

"The ship will be departing today," Bianchi said, "Sometime around eleven."

"That soon," my brother's voice had a bit of disbelief laced in, "That doesn't give us much time to pack our bags."

"Well, then we better just grab the essentials," I said firmly, "I'll get the bags if you leave a note for mom and dad, just in case they get home a little earlier than expected."

With that being decided I rushed upstairs and grabbed a few changes of clothes for each of us, and snagged our swimsuits. With no time to double check that I'd gotten everything I flew down the stairs, and slipped on my shoes. Arashi handed me two pairs of flip-flops that I unceremoniously threw into the bag I'd packed. Then we we're out the door, and rushing to the docks. As we ran I finally noticed the absence of a few people.

"Hey, Yamamoto," I started gaining my friends attention, "Where are Tsuna and Gokudera?"

"The kid said Tsuna and his mother are already aboard the ship," Yamamoto replied, "And we went to Gokudera's to get him but he wasn't home. I left a message on his voice mail though so he might meet us there."

"I see," I said. Everything was beginning to make a little sense. Reborn had probably gotten Tsuna and his mother on the ship somehow, and now he was bringing us on board likely to mess with the poor boy. At least if past experiences were anything to go by. Our group slowed as we reached the small port. Reborn and Bianchi motioned for the rest of us to hide behind some of the cargo crates while they dealt with the two men guarding the gang plank. Both men were taken out with one blow, and we quickly stowed away on board.

"This is gonna cause trouble for someone isn't it?" Arashi asked me. I nodded, thinking of the person most likely to get in the most trouble.

"Yeah, likely Tsuna will be the one who we cause trouble for," I said matter-of-factly. Our group headed further into the ship, and my stomach growled a bit as the smell of food drifted towards our group. We found ourselves outside of a dining hall where several people were sitting at tables and eating. I saw a bit of a smirk on Reborn's face as he whispered something to Bianchi before disappearing. I glanced over at my brother, and it was clear that like me he knew that we were about to do something wrong… well, do something else wrong since we'd already knocked out the guards.

~Arashi's POV~

"This isn't going to end well for someone is it?" I asked my sister. She nodded in reply as Bianchi said something to the man who seemed to be in charge of seating people. Our group was lead over to a table where food was already waiting. We all sat down and ate our fill; though Lambo appeared to have eaten quite a bit of it by himself. Once we were finished we all stood. Yuzuki and I peered out of a window, while the others were off to the side talking amongst themselves. It wasn't long before the 'someone it wasn't going to end well for' showed up.

"What about our dinner?!" Tsuna's yell had my sister and I glancing over our shoulders. The two of us shared a look filled with guilt.

"Bianchi must have told that man she was Sawada-san," Yuzuki said, "and we just totally ate all of their food."

I nodded, "Yeah, and the worst part is we we're both expecting something like this to happen."

Yuzuki hummed in agreement as Tsuna started towards the table only to trip over something. That something turned out to be Lambo who had fallen into a sort of food coma.

"Lambo-san's so full," the boy mumbled in his sleep.

"He ate it all a fell asleep!" Tsuna shouted. Yuzuki rolled her eyes, and I shook my head. Lambo might have had a huge appetite, but it wasn't possible for a five year-old to eat all of the food that he had. Plus there was some wine that had been provided, and only Bianchi had been able to drink it.

"Oh, Lambo-kun? Why are you here?" Tsuna's mother said bending down to pick him up. Up in the air Lambo blinked awake, and reached out for Sawada-san. He clearly had missed the woman. That was when Bianchi decided to make her presence known.

"Stupid cow," she said, "He started crying when he realized Mama was gone."

"Why are you here, too?" Tsuna asked. Instead of giving the boy a direct answer she went about it in a roundabout way.

"And when she heard Tsuna and Mama weren't coming home, she started crying as well," Bianchi answered. To which I-Pin jumped up from where she'd been hiding.

"I-Pin too?" Tsuna cried out disbelieving, "Why did you lie like that?"

"Everyone together, good," I-Pin said, "Being separated is sad."

"Yeah, that's right, it's more fun together!" Yamamoto spoke up hand on the back of his head, and a smile on his face.

"I think so too!" Haru said in agreement.

"So we all came along!" Fuuta's voice chimed in filled with cheer, "Sorry, Tsuna-nii!"

"Yamamoto, Haru and even Fuuta?" Tsuna cried out.

"Well, them and us to Tsuna," Yuzuki said bowing apologetically, "Though we do apologize for eating your dinner, and barging in on you and your mother like this."

I followed suit, "Yes, it was improper of us. But it does seem like a lot of fun."

"Yuzuki and Arashi as well!" the poor teen seemed ready to faint. Thankfully, Yamamoto spoke up before that could happen.

"Yo, Tsuna. Sure is amazing, huh?" Yamamoto's voice was laced with happiness, "I've never been on a boat this big!"

"I've been on one, with my family," Haru chimed in, "But my heart is pounding because I'm with you! It's like a rehearsal for our honeymoon!" to which Tsuna didn't look too pleased, "And the ship of love carrying the two of us is headed to the South Sea!"

Yuzuki's eye twitched as Haru spiraled into a fantasy of her own creation. I had to chuckle a little at my twin's reaction, though it wasn't all that surprising. Yuzuki had never been one to approve of people that forced their own feelings onto others. Luckily Tsuna managed to distract my sister with a question.

~Yuzuki's POV~

"Ano… Yuzuki," my friend began pulling my attention away from Haru, "How long have you had that necklace?"

For a moment I wasn't sure what he was talking about. Then I remembered I'd decided to wear the tiger pendant necklace for this trip.

"Oh, this," I fiddled with the pendant earning a nod from Tsuna, "It was left on the bedside table in the nurse's office for me the day Arashi started school. I've been wearing it off and on to see if anyone would react to seeing me wear it so that I could give it back."

"Give it back?" my brunet friend seemed confused.

"Well, it's rather expensive and I don't like getting gifts like that," I replied, "It makes me feel like I have to give something back, which isn't the gift giver's fault of course. Unfortunately, whoever gave me this wants to remain anonymous so I haven't been able to give it back."

Suddenly I was pulled to the side by Bianchi and Haru (who had come out of her trance at some point). Confused I looked between the two. Both of them shared a look then turned to me with unsettling grins.

"So, the necklace was an anonymous gift?" Bianchi questioned. I nodded unsure of where this was going.

"Sounds like you have a secret admirer," Haru chimed in, "How romantic?"

"Secret… admirer… me?" I questioned slowly unsure if I'd heard the girl right. Haru nodded enthusiastically, while Bianchi sent me a knowing look. I shook my head, there was no way someone from school liked me like that. But then, I knew none of my friends could've afforded to buy the necklace. Which left the possibility of Haru and Bianchi being right, but that wasn't something I wanted to be true.

"Well, if she does he'll have to get past our dad," Arashi said suddenly startling the three of us a bit, "And if he manages to do that then he'll have me to deal with."

I snickered despite myself, "And pity the poor fool that has to deal with Arashi."

~Arashi's POV~

I smiled as Yuzuki snickered, though I wasn't about to deny her claim. The boy that was lucky enough to get past my father's high standards would have to be something very special, but father's requirements were nothing compared to my own. Yuzuki was my twin after all; I'd only give her up to someone who would care about her as much as I did, albeit in a very different way. As it was Yuzuki seemed so certain that a secret admirer was out of the question, but from where I was standing it was a huge possibility. It had always irked me when Yuzuki brushed over the fact that a boy might find her attractive. Admittedly most of her reasons stemmed from humility; she was always of the opinion that there were people far better-looking than her.

While that wasn't entirely wrong I could still remember some boys from our old school that had tried to make advances on my twin. Unfortunately for them, or maybe fortunately, Yuzuki had mistaken their attention for friendship or practical jokes. With that in mind I decided to keep a closer eye on the people that had contact with my twin.

~Yuzuki's POV~

I sent a curious glance at my brother who seemed to be lost in thought. I was curious over what could be running through his mind. Despite that I shrugged it off, sure that if it was important he'd tell me. I was snapped out of my own musings when Tsuna suddenly shouted.

"Then Gokudera-kun, too?!"

"Well, I went to invite him, but he wasn't home," Yamamoto said, "I left our destination on his voice mail, but he didn't show up."

"Yeah," Tsuna said seeming both disappointed and relieved. I could understand why. He considered Gokudera a good friend, but he could only put up with him so long. My brunet friend slipped into some thought that had him smiling when Yamamoto spoke up again.

"And the kid told me to invite Sasagawa and Sasagawa's brother," the tall teen continued, "But it happened to overlap with their family vacation, and they couldn't make it this time."

Needless to say that completely crushed Tsuna. I placed a comforting hand on my friends shoulder. I'd been hoping that Kyoko would have been able to come as well so that I wouldn't have to deal with Haru alone. It wasn't that I hated the girl, but my relationship with her was similar to Tsuna and Gokudera's.

"Did everyone come?" Tsuna's mother asked gaining her son's attention.

"Does that mean _he_ did, too?!" Tsuna's voice was panicked as he looked around. Arashi made his way over to me.

"Didn't he disappear just before we ate?" my twin whispered. I nodded. Arashi looked around, and I followed suit looking for the hitman who'd left our group the moment we stepped into the dining room. However, it was only when Reborn spoke that we were able to find him.

"Renaissance!" the voice came from the top on one of the decorative pillars in the room. He wasn't wearing an outfit per say but he was done up to look like one of the renaissance statues. Thankfully Tsuna was of the same mind as me and my brother as he shouted.

"Put some clothes on!" my friend was in a panic, "And how did you get aboard?!"

I shared a guilty look with Arashi as Reborn replied, "Through the front door, after beating up the guards, fair and square."

That of course caused Tsuna to panic even more, "Beating up?! If they found out what you did…"

The moment those words left Tsuna's mouth some security guards ran up to the entrance of the dining room. They stood there for a moment while the occupants of the room looked around confused. Once we saw those men our little group of stowaways ducked under one of the tables. Then the group of men came into the room and began questioning the passengers. As luck would have it one of the men came up to Tsuna.

"Excuse me for bothering you," the man said, "Have you seen any suspicious children around?"

Tsuna panicked even more, "No, I haven't!"

"I see," the man saluted my friend, "They don't seem to be here!"

Once the man was gone Tsuna lifted the tablecloth, "They're looking for you, after all!"

"I'm sorry, Tsuna-san," Haru said, "I couldn't stop Bianchi-san and Reborn-chan's violence!"

Arashi and I nodded in agreement with Haru's words. Bianchi chose that moment to speak up.

"It's alright, Haru. Anything is allowed for the sake of love," Gokudera's sister said. I wanted to facepalm, but there wasn't quite enough room to do so. Arashi simply sighed and shook his head, clearly not agreeing with that logic.

"No, it's not!" Tsuna was more vocal about his opinion.

"It's all right," Yamamoto said crawling out from under the table and standing, "It's just a little hide-and-seek. It sounds like fun."

I shook my head slowly as I grabbed Arashi's hand allowing him to help pull me to my feet. Tsuna simply sighed realizing that he wouldn't be able to say anything to convince Yamamoto that this was not a game.

"This isn't good," Reborn said pulling everyone's attention to him, "If we're caught, Tsuna and Mama will be dropped off on an island along the way, too."

"What about the South Sea island?!" Tsuna was liable to have a heart-attack at this rate.

"Tsuna does realize that what Reborn said isn't true, right?" I asked Arashi quietly.

"From the way he reacted I highly doubt that. It seems like it's supposed to be common sense, but then…" my twin said trailing off.

"When has anything been normal around this group," I finished for Arashi.

~Arashi's POV~

I nodded when my sister finished my thought. Before we could think about the matter further Bianchi started speaking.

"Don't worry," she said, "I'll take care of it. We want to enjoy a nice holiday, too. Right, Reborn?"

I shared a look with my sister. It was clear to see that Yuzuki was just as weirded out with Bianchi's behavior as I was. So far today we'd seen two people go off into a dreamland of their own creation. It honestly confused me to no end. Tsuna's voice saved me from dwelling on it.

"Do you plan on hiding until we get to the island?" the brunet asked. I had a feeling Tsuna was going to regret asking that.

"What are you talking about?" Reborn asked, "We're hitmen. We'll assassinate the guards," which proved my feeling to be true.

"I saw that coming," my sister said from beside me. I nodded in agreement as Tsuna's panic continued behind the group of four hitmen consisting of Reborn, Lambo, I-Pin and Bianchi that had adopted a pose that looked pretty cool.

"That's so wrong!" Tsuna screamed.

"Let's go!" Reborn called out and the four scattered. Tsuna flailed around his calls for them to wait falling on deaf ears.

"Are we playing tag now?" Yamamoto asked, "With a ship this big, we can play to our hearts' content."

"I don't think-" Yuzuki was cut off by Fuuta.

"Should I hide too, Tsuna-nii?" the young boy asked.

I sighed, "I don't think that's such a good idea. This ship is pretty huge after all; were gonna need a lot of help to find everyone."

Everyone was quiet, and I could feel my face growing warm with embarrassment; I wondered if I'd said something strange. Thankfully Yamamoto, Fuuta and Haru gave me a look of understanding after a few minutes. Yuzuki smiled at me while giving me a thumbs up. I returned her smile and the embarrassed heat slowly disappeared from my cheeks.

"It's so much more fun with everyone here," Tsuna's mother said happily. Tsuna was flailing around in such a weird way.

"That's not the problem," the brunet cried, "What do we do?!"

~Slight Time Skip~

After Tsuna's outburst the six of us immediately rushed out of the dining room and through the halls. Needless to say we were all pretty frantic to find the other four that were currently hiding, and quite possibly working on assassinating the guards. But seeing as how we were dealing with trained hitmen our search was proving to be rather difficult.

"Geez, where did they go?" Tsuna asked as our rushed footsteps sounded through the hall.

"They all have high ranks in the 'mafioso who are good at hide-and-seek'." Fuuta spoke up from his place at Tsuna's side, "so I don't think this will be easy."

"Really?!" Tsuna asked.

"Well, even if they didn't have high rankings I still don't think it'd be that easy Tsuna," I said, "We are dealing with highly trained hitmen after all."

Yuzuki nodded though it was hard to tell due to her gait, "Arashi's right. We'll have to think of some better way to catch them."

We ran for a little while longer until we came to a crossroads. The path split into four ways; in front of us and to the sides as well as leading back the way we came. We paused for a moment while we considered our options. Yamamoto was the one who got us moving again.

"Anyway, let's start from the edges," he said pointing to the right path, "I'll try this way."

Haru pointed off to the left, "I'll go this way."

"Yuzuki and I will head back the way we came. After all it's possible they backtracked, or we just missed them," I said turning back.

"We'll be sure to do a thorough sweep," my sister assured the brunet.

"I'm counting on you," Tsuna said, "If you catch them, bring them to my room."

"Hai," Haru cheered lifting up her hand, "For your sake, I will complete the mission and not concern myself with danger!"

"I've been good at tag since I was little!" Yamamoto sent Tsuna a thumbs up," Leave it to me!"

"We'll catch up with you later Tsuna," Yuzuki called over her shoulder as the two of us took off. We backtracked pretty far being careful to check every nook and cranny that we possibly could. It soon became apparent that none of them had hidden nearby.

"Looks like this area's completely empty," I observed, "Should we try and catch up with the others?"

My sister nodded, but just as we turned around a group of guards was running towards us. In an instant we shared a look before bolting. In all the urgency to find Reborn and his little group I'd forgotten that these guys would be after us as well, and it was clear that Yuzuki was in the same boat as I was. My twin and I rounded corner after corner, but the guards would not be shaken; we'd even dove into a group of passengers briefly but even that couldn't get the men off our tails. I was quickly losing steam, and it was obvious to me that my sister, though in better shape than me, was also close to dropping.

It was just our luck that the next corner we rounded revealed Tsuna and the others. Though the group was missing Fuuta, and in the young boy's place was Gokudera. Thankfully it seemed as though they'd managed to find Reborn and the others, but now we were bringing trouble right to them. I made a mental note to apologize to Tsuna when the chance arose, especially once the looks of shock and fear appeared on our friends faces.

"There's the rest of them!" the leader of the group following us shouted.

"They found us!" Tsuna exclaimed.

"Oh, no! What do we do?!" Haru shouted. Gokudera was suddenly holding dynamite in his hands, which was really concerning. Did he intend to throw it at the group behind us even though Yuzuki and I were still in front of them? Not to mention that we were on a ship, and who knows what kind of damage the explosives could cause in this enclosed space.

Do we break through them?" the silverette asked. Tsuna suddenly pushed him down.

"No! No!" Tsuna cried out. It was at this moment that Yuzuki and I reached them closely followed by the guards. Before we could even consider grabbing the others and booking it we were surrounded. I began to wonder what our parents would think when they were told their twin children were in jail because they snuck onto a cruise ship. I had a feeling it wouldn't be pleasant at all. I was startled from my thoughts as the men drew closer and Yuzuki shifted into a defensive stance. Tsuna lifted his hands in a placating manner as he tried to explain himself.

"Umm… we have an explanation," he said backing up as the men drew closer still intimidating looks on their faces. Tsuna began to have another mini freak out when one of the men spoke.

"It's really Reborn-san!" the guy said. My sister and I fell to the ground in utter disbelief over what had just occurred. Not only were the men kneeling on the ground surrounding the child hitman, but the fact the guards on a cruise ship knew him made it clear that he had planned this all along. Well, that and this wasn't a regular cruise.

"The way you defeated the guards was amazing work, Reborn-san!" another man said.

"It's an honor to have you on this ship," a third spoke up.

"Sorry to make a ruckus. Here are our tickets," the hitman said. I shared a look with my sister. The both of us were completely convinced now that he had done everything just to mess with Tsuna… and the rest of us too, but mostly Tsuna.

~Yuzuki's POV~

With Arashi of the same mind as me I turned my attention back to the unusual sight before me.

"You're welcome here even without tickets, Reborn-san," one of the guards said, but I had to wonder if that extended to the rest of us stowaways as well. Tsuna was still standing shell-shocked.

"What going on?" the brunet asked. I was going to explain things to him, but Reborn beat me to it… and I wasn't about to risk getting on the hitman's bad side just to explain something extremely simple to my friend.

"I had tickets for us, too. This ship is going to Mafia Land," Reborn said.

"Mafia Land?!" Tsuna shouted. I was pleased to find that most of our group was confused about the place as well. Though it was clear that it was something directly related to the Mafia.

"That-" Gokudera was instantly cut off by Reborn.

"Mafia Land is a place where Mafioso can go to relax without being seen," the hitman glanced over his shoulder at our group, "It's a super resort island constructed with financial backing from each Mafia family."

"What is that?!" Tsuna cried out but then seemed to be struck by a realization, "That means these people are…" the moment the brunet trailed of the group of 'guards' chuckled a bit before pulling off the attire revealing themselves to be members of the Mafia themselves.

"People scouted from each family," Reborn explained.

Tsuna clutched at his hair completely freaked out, "They're Mafia after all!"

Arashi sent our friend a sympathetic look as he sank to the floor in defeat. I knelt down and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, and sent him a small smile. I was so focused on giving my friend support that I completely missed what was said next.

~Slight Timeskip Again~

Our entire group 'stowaways' and all had made our way to the deck. I'd found out from Arashi that Tsuna and his mother had been able to go on this trip because Reborn had given them a special prize ticket. He claimed that Tsuna's mother needed a vacation, but from experience I was pretty sure that there was more to it. After all we'd had the whole 'hide-and-seek' fiasco to attest to an ulterior motive. I snapped out of my reverie when Tsuna's mother and Haru pointed out the island. I patted Tsuna's back comfortingly as he freaked out over the fact that the place was a Mafia resort.

"It looks like and amusement park," Tsuna's mother said, "How fun!"

Needless to say Tsuna wasn't the only confused and shocked one. But I wasn't able to dwell on that as Haru spoke up.

"It's a dream island! I'm so excited!" the brunette girl exclaimed. Tsuna stood, and my brother and I followed his lead. The place did indeed look like an amusement park, but I wouldn't have called it a dream island. Regardless the place looked pretty descent, and I was actually starting to look forward to the ship's docking. I glanced over at my brother and found him just as excited, maybe more so, as I was. I smiled; it had been quite some time since we'd been able to do something like this. I was so lost in the moment that I didn't notice the others come to join us. Instead I kept my gaze focused on the island drawing ever nearer, but even as excitement coursed through my veins I had a feeling that this wouldn't end up being a normal trip. Of course with friends like Tsuna and the others nothing was ever normal.

 **Me: Well, that's the end of Chapter Twenty-Two. So, with that being said Merry Chirstmas minna. I hope that you're all having a good time with family and friends. I know this isn't a Christmas themed chapter, but please consider this my gift to all of you.**

 **Yuzuki: Well, even if your readers don't Arashi and I will. After all you've been working so hard on this. Not only have you been rewriting this entire FanFiction, but you've also had to make all of us OCs believable while at the same time keeping the canon characters in character.**

 **Arashi: Indeed, and that is not an easy task. However, you stepped up to the challenge quite nicely, and I think I speak for all of the other OCs in this book when I say we're proud of you and grateful as well.**

 **Me: Aw… thanks you guys.**

 **Ben: Yeah, yeah. All that mushy stuff aside… you have been doing pretty good, and you writing has gotten a bit better.**

 **Jenna: For sure, so keep up the good work Cloud.**

 **Me: I intend too. Now before I say goodbye for now I want to remind you all that I, CloudSkylark18, do not own KHR. I do however, own my OCs and the plot whenever they are involved.**

 **Yuzuki: With that being said, have a safe and happy Christmas holiday.**

 **Arashi: So long for now everyone!**


	25. Mafia Land Training Camp

Mafia Land Training Camp

~Yuzuki's POV~

I looked around completely in awe. Mafia Land really was a theme park. It had everything from food stalls to rides to entertainers. It was actually pretty normal looking, but that just made me wary. This was a place built by the mafia which meant that most people here were probably from various Families. Still it was easy to forget with how normal everything and everyone here looked, but I found myself sidling up to my brother for reassurance.

"Wow!" Tsuna's mother said as we walked further into the park, "How wonderful! Just what I'd expect from as super-luxurious resort!"

"An amusement park! An amusement park! Lambo-san's gonna play!" Lambo gleefully shouted as his head whipped back and forth taking in all the sights. I-Pin was equally excited.

"I-Pin can't wait!" the young girl said. After saying that she and Lambo started running off before being promptly caught by Tsuna.

"Wait! You'll get lost!" my friend said. Suddenly Haru was right next to him.

"Tsuna-san!" the girl practically shouted startling Tsuna, "Which do you want to ride? Haru wants to ride the thrilling jet coaster!"

Fuuta then spoke up with a ranking for the ride, "Yeah, that roller coaster is ranked number three out of the eight thousand four hundred and fifty-two 'rides so scary you'll faint'. You can be sure that it'll be thrilling."

"I can't ride something so scary!" Tsuna screamed. He started a few seconds later when he saw Haru, Fuuta, Lambo and I-Pin run further into the park, "Wait, I said!"

"Let's hurry and get in line!" Haru's voice carried back to us as the four continued on.

"Lambo-san gets to go first!" the little boy cheered.

I-Pin's cheerful voice followed his, "I-Pin up front!"

"Me, too!" Fuuta's voice drifted back. Tsuna sighed, and I sent a sympathetic look his way. The brunet started when Yamamoto placed a hand on his shoulder.

"It's all right, Tsuna," Yamamoto reassured our friend, "This place looks like a lot of fun. I can understand why they're being restless."

"You're right," Tsuna said smiling. He looked after the four that had already made their way further into the park. I followed his gaze before glancing over at Arashi. It was clear that my brother shared my thoughts. This place didn't look like a place that was run by the mafia, but then we'd heard the truth of it from Reborn. Plus the men on the cruise ship were clearly not ordinary guards.

"A lot of dirty money was put into this place so the mafia could have good clean fun," the hitman said as though he heard our thoughts.

"That seems wrong," Tsuna said.

"Whether or not it seems wrong," I started.

"Doesn't change the fact that it's the truth," Arashi finished for me. Tsuna sighed, but he couldn't deny the truth of our words. Suddenly a group of men and women were running our way.

"There's Reborn-san!" one of the men shouted as the group drew closer. Arashi, Tsuna and I shared a look of confusion. It wasn't surprising that they knew the hitman, but it was still strange to see a group of people come right up to such a dangerous individual. They surrounded Reborn, a couple even leaned down closer to his height, all of them holding out recording devices.

"Are these people some kind of reporters?" I asked.

Arashi shrugged, "Not sure, but if they're not maybe there like mafia paparazzi."

Two of the men asked Reborn some questions which Reborn easily deflected. It was clear he was used to this treatment; meaning he was probably very popular in the mafia world. Which, would mean that those people being reporters or paparazzi wouldn't be too far from the truth. The group walked away; their disappointment clear.

"You're that famous?" Tsuna asked. I wondered how Tsuna could even ask that question after everything we'd seen so far. The 'guards' on the boat should have been a dead giveaway for how well-known Reborn was. But if that wasn't enough the infant hitman pointed to something behind Tsuna.

"Look over there," Reborn said, high up in the air were what appeared to be balloons shaped like Reborn's face, "If it weren't for my connections, you wouldn't have been allowed in here. It's so popular that the reservations are always full."

"Really?!" Tsuna voice was full of shock.

"Well, that's not too strange," I murmured, "After all some hotels and restaurants are just as booked."

"Wow! That's amazing! Thanks for inviting us, kid!" Yamamoto spoke up. I jumped slightly along with Arashi. The taller male had been so quiet that the two of us had completely forgotten his presence.

"Sometimes it's important to relax," the hitman said. However, something in the way he said that set me on edge. And after sharing a look with my brother it was clear that he felt the same way. Still with nothing really out of the ordinary neither of us had a way to call him out on it. Not that we would; we valued our lives way too much.

~Arashi's POV~

Yamamoto's voice cut through my thoughts, and my sister's as well if her look was anything to go by, again, "We should go too, Tsuna!"

"Yeah," the brunette replied then paused as a thought seemed to hit him, "Where's Gokudera-kun?"

"Now that you mention it I haven't seen him at all," I said, "He got off the boat with us right?"

Yuzuki nodded, "Yeah, but I lost track of him after that."

A low groan caught the attention of all four of us. We turned around to seen Gokudera kneeling on the ground clutching his stomach.

"Are you all right, Gokudera-kun?" Tsuna asked concerned. Even Yuzuki looked worried about the silverette, not that she would admit it, even with all the fighting they did from time to time.

"Jyuudaime, please enjoy yourself. Don't worry about me," it was clear that Gokudera was trying to play off his pain as being inconsequential, but it wasn't really working all that well. It was clear that Tsuna was worried about his friend, but Gokudera was sticking to his claim that he was fine waving off Tsuna's concern. Unfortunately for him his sister decided to step in.

"I guess I have no choice," Bianchi said from her place next to the bomber, "I'll take care of Hayato."

Both Tsuna and Gokudera started, but the latter ended up looking at his sister's face which only made his condition worse. He collapsed to the ground face down. I had to wonder if he was hurt falling like he had.

"Hayato always gets a fever when he plays too much. He's such a child," Bianchi said. The scary thing was she really believed this.

"I don't think that's it!" Tsuna said. Before anything else could be said Haru and the kids were running back our way.

"Tsuna-san!" Haru called out waving as she ran our way, "There's a beautiful beach over there! After we're finished at the amusement park, let's go for a swim!"

"Swimming?" Tsuna questioned.

"Tsuna, you can't play yet," Reborn suddenly spoke up, "You've got an entrance exam to deal with."

"Wha? What is that?!" Tsuna shouted his question.

"You must go to the reception office and inform them of your arrival. You are our representative," Reborn said with a self-satisfied air.

"What is that? Don't make me our representative without asking!" Tsuna cried out.

"But I think you're our leader," Yamamoto suddenly spoke up surprising Tsuna. Yuzuki and I nodded in agreement. Before Tsuna could even try to get out of the job his mother spoke up.

"We'll play here, so go on ahead," Nana said holding the youngest members of our group's hands.

"Let's get going!" Lambo cried out with a happy tone in his voice, "Lambo-san wants to ride that!"

"I get it," Tsuna mumbled, "I need to take care of the procedures, right? Why me?"

With that the brunette walked off to take care of everything. I glanced at my sister, and she sent me a subtle nod. Before Tsuna could get far the two of us were right next to him. Our friend started, and sent us a questioning look.

"Well, it wouldn't be fair for you to go by yourself," I said. Yuzuki nodded.

"Besides it wouldn't hurt to know where the reception desk is," my sister added. Tsuna smiled, and the three of us continued on.

~Slight Timeskip; Yuzuki's POV~

It had taken us a bit of time, but we'd gotten to the building where the receptionist was. Even so, we had to wait for a good thirty minutes after getting there so she could take care of some of the other patrons.

"Next person, please," she said looking up. Arashi and I followed Tsuna to the desk giving him silent support, and reassuring looks. Still something about this whole situation seemed off to me. Just as we were leaving the group I'd glanced back and Reborn had seemed overly happy about something. And as with all things Reborn related I had a feeling that it wouldn't be good for Tsuna, not to mention my brother and me as well. For the moment I chose to ignore my feeling of foreboding and focused my attention on being ready to help my friend should he need it.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi, of the Vongola Family," Tsuna said looking thoroughly depressed at having to make any sort of connection with the mafia. Of course it was a surprise since Tsuna had made it perfectly clear on multiple occasions that he really wanted nothing to do with the Mafia.

"Do you have a nomination or an invitation?" the lady asked. I sent a look to my brother. I had no idea what a nomination was in this case, but Reborn had invited the two of us. I had no idea exactly how Tsuna and his mother had gotten aboard the ship, so I had no idea how to help him out of this situation.

"No," Tsuna replied, though he sounded confused when he spoke. He probably didn't have any clue how to really answer the woman's question.

"No invitation…" she trailed off for a moment as she typed something on her computer, "In that case, we'll need to give you a mafia examination."

Arashi and I shared a look with Tsuna before our brunette friend spoke up, "A mafia examination?"

My bad feeling was creeping up again, and Arashi was clearly picking up on my attitude. Sharing another look with my twin revealed that he was of the same mind as me. As it was the three of us had no choice but to follow the lady as she stood and headed down a hallway. She stopped outside of a door, and gestured to it.

"This way please," the woman said. Tsuna stepped forward and opened the door. Arashi and I followed close behind our friend. The three of us paused at the sight before us. A man was seated in a very comfortable looking black chair in front of a window. His right leg rested on his left and his hands lay on top of that. He was smoking a cigar which had me wrinkling my nose a bit; I'd never cared for the smell of tobacco smoke. All in all the man cut a very imposing figure.

"Who is that?" Tsuna asked. My brother also seemed interested to know. I was more concerned with how he was connected with this examination and the mafia in general.

"He's someone who has connections with the government," the receptionist explained, "Here are one million Euros. Please bribe him properly."

"What is that?!" Tsuna shrieked. I glanced at my friend.

"I think this is your exam," I whispered to him. He glanced over at me briefly before looking back to the woman who had lead us here.

"Through this exam, you will prove to us that you are Sawada, the Tenth Vongola," the woman said. I sighed, how would that prove anything? Tsuna had only recently begun training, reluctantly, to become the next boss.

"Hey, Yuzuki do you think Tsuna can do this?" Arashi asked me in a low voice.

I shrugged before speaking keeping my voice low as well, "I don't know, though it doesn't seem very likely. After all Tsuna only recently began training to become a boss. I really don't think he knows how to bribe anyone. But he's surprised people before, maybe this will be one of those times."

While I'd been talking to my brother, I'd missed what Tsuna had said but I heard the lady loud and clear, "If you give up on the exam, both you and your guests will be thrown into the sea."

"How can you smile as you say that?!" Tsuna shouted.

"Probably because she's part of the mafia," my brother said in a deadpan voice.

"Please begin," the lady said still smiling. Tsuna had no idea what to do at all, that much was clear even without him saying a single thing. Unfortunately, Arashi and I couldn't help him with this task. Neither of us had ever had to bribe anyone either. I glanced over at my friend to find he was having a bit of a mental breakdown.

"Hey, calm down," I said making Tsuna jump, "Arashi and me are here with you. No matter what happens just try your best okay."

"Yuzuki's right, Tsuna. We might not be able to help you with the task, but we'll give you what support we can," my brother said placing a hand on the brunette's shoulder. Tsuna looked between the two of us and gave us a shaky smile. While that didn't instill a lot of confidence in me, I knew that Tsuna was doing the best he could. Arashi and I could only watch as Tsuna walked up to the man, and not so discreetly tried to offer him the bribe.

"Do you think he's doing this right?" Arashi asked. I shrugged, but I had a feeling that giving someone a bribe like that was not normal. My suspicions were proven true when the lady suddenly shouted.

"Stop right there!" he voice had all three of us jumping, "Unless you inform him that it's a bribe, he won't know what the money is for."

"Isn't that a little blunt?!" Tsuna asked confused. He made a good point, but it wasn't like you had to outright say it. Maybe you could do it in a more discreet way. But all thoughts of bribery were swept from my mind when the lady spoke again.

"Unfortunately, you fail," she said pulling out some sort of electronical device and pressing a button. A set of double doors to our right opened and security guards rushed into the room. Two of them grabbed Tsuna, and lifted him off the ground. I was distracted from what he said when one made a grab for me, only to be blocked by my brother. He glared at the man.

"Don't touch my sister," Arashi's voice was menacing and held a promise of pain should his warning go unheeded, "As long as you do that we'll follow you willingly."

Needless to say the men didn't try grabbing me again. Arashi and I also held up our part of the bargain and followed the men dragging Tsuna down the hall they had come from. We walked quite some ways before we reached the end of the hall. There we found a train with open doors. The men who carried Tsuna threw him into one of the cars, and with nothing else to do Arashi and I followed him.

~Arashi's POV~

The train we were on was actually very nice looking, but seeing as how it was probably purchased with money from various mafia families that wasn't all that surprising. Yuzuki had taken a seat and was looking out the window, though with us being underground there wasn't a whole lot to see. I was so focused on taking in the surroundings I missed what Tsuna had said when we first started moving. However, my attention was caught by an oh so familiar voice.

"Under Mafia Land," Reborn said. Yuzuki and Tsuna were also shocked to find the hitman was actually in the train car with us.

"Reborn! From the start, you knew this would happen!" Tsuna yelled, "What is Under Mafia Land?"

Reborn's answer was cryptic as ever, "You'll see when you get there."

That of course was enough to make me both worried and curious. The tunnel came to a sudden end and we found ourselves out under the sun. Palm trees and those of the regular variety, and craggy rock formations passed us by as the train continued on to our destination.

"What is this place?" Tsuna asked as he looked out the window. He got no answer from Reborn as the train flew through a forested area. We continued down the tracks before the train finally pulled to a stop.

"We're here," Reborn spoke up. That being said the four of us waited until the car doors opened and then stepped out onto the rocky soil. The sea breeze felt nice after being inside the building and then the train. More of the rock formations I'd seen earlier stood on either side of us. In front of us was definitely a cliff, but even with the possible danger of falling I couldn't help but walk forward to get a better view of the ocean stretching out before me. Yuzuki had followed me, and I could hear Tsuna speaking from behind us.

"I think we're on the backside of the island," he said. Suddenly an unfamiliar voice had me and Yuzuki spinning around.

"Good of you to come, kora!" the voice came from a child with blond hair and blue eyes. He was decked out in a military outfit, and he even had a sniper rifle to complete the look. Sitting on his head was some sort of bird of prey… maybe an eagle. A light blue pacifier hung from around his neck; it looked similar to Reborn's so it was clear that this kid was not a person you wanted to mess with.

"Say your names, kora!" the boy said. I opened my mouth to reply but Tsuna stopped me before I could by asking a question.

"Who is this baby?" Tsuna's voice wavered a bit, not that I could blame him some much had happened today and in such a short period of time. Reborn answered Tsuna's question, but in a very roundabout way.

"Ciaossu, Colonello," the infant hitman said. The other kid's eyes widened.

"Reborn! Hey!" with no warning Colonello shot at Reborn, but the bullet didn't look normal. What it was I couldn't tell, but I had a feeling it still wouldn't feel good to get hit by that. Reborn had effortlessly dodged the shot, and returned fire. His bullet found it's mark and had the other sprawled on his back. Reborn landed neatly at Tsuna's side.

"He's Colonello, and he's in charge of Under Mafia Land," Reborn answered Tsuna's earlier question with more detail.

"You killed him!" Tsuna shouted. Yuzuki rolled her eyes.

"I highly doubt that," my sister said, and as if to prove her right Colonello suddenly sat up as if he hadn't just been shot.

"We're made of different stuff, kora!" he said as though nothing could be more normal. Well, maybe for him it was.

"You've got to be kidding," Tsuna shouted. The eagle flew back and landed on Colonello's hat once more as the blond stood and picked up the shell that had hit him. He slung the rifle over his back not even slouching a bit under its weight.

"This pathetic little bullet must be Reborn's, kora," Colonello said holding it up to Reborn.

"That huge rifle… You have terrible taste as always, Colonello," our very own infant hitman retorted. I glanced over at Tsuna and found that he was handling this entire situation quite well in spite of his earlier outburst.

"Are you Reborn's friend?" the question seemed innocent enough, but the two children before us didn't seem to think so.

"We're not that friendly, kora. I just haven't been able to get rid of him." Colonello said.

"We were both born and grew up in the same place," Reborn said after the blond.

"So you're childhood friends. No wonder he's so weird," Tsuna stated. Thankfully the two didn't do anything about our friend's choice of words. I glanced at my sister. It looked like she was trying to hold back laughter.

~Yuzuki's POV~

My shoulders shook a little as I tried to keep the laughter bubbling up in my throat from escaping. I believed Colonello when he said that, but it also seemed like something good friends would say about another. Still I wasn't about to be caught laughing or speak my thought about the matter.

"Reborn, why did you come here?" Colonello turned his gaze towards the dark haired child hitman.

Tsuna's tutor replied, "I'm just here to observe. Tsuna, my student, is going to be trained here."

"So that's where my bad feeling was coming from," I glanced around the area we all stood in as I spoke quietly. There wasn't a whole lot of land since we were standing on a cliff, but it did seem like a good place for some training in spite of that. Of course even with that information I knew that Tsuna wasn't going to be thrilled at all with the prospect of training.

And to prove my point my brunette friend spoke up, "What do you mean 'train'?"

Those who have been found guilty of unauthorized entry on this island are given a single chance. And Under Mafia Land is where you come to train for it," Reborn explained, "The instructor is a former member of Italy's special underwater assault team COMSUBIN, Colonello."

"This baby was in the military?!" Tsuna's voice held an incredulous edge.

"Tsuna if Rebon can be a hitman," I began.

"Then Colonello-san can be a former military member," Arashi finished for me. Honestly, after spending time around Tsuna and Reborn I had learned that nothing is impossible. Even my brother knew that, and that was simply because I'd told him all about my misadventures with the group. I really couldn't understand how Tsuna was so surprised still with all the weird things he'd had to deal with since Reborn had started training him.

Colonello sent a look at me and my brother before he spoke, "So you're Vongola Jyuudaime, kora. If you're Reborn's student, it's no wonder you didn't pass the test. But you can be at ease now. I'll train you properly so you'll be able to pass the re-examination."

Tsuna seemed surprised that Colonello was able to speak about Reborn like he had. If I were to be honest I was pretty shocked as well, and Arashi wasn't any different. Any sane person wouldn't dare say anything negative about Reborn's training without expecting repercussions. However, Colonello had just done so but Reborn didn't seem too offended; heck he didn't seem offended at all. Perhaps the two were actually close friends despite the denial on both sides.

"I'll just observe," Reborn said to the blond infant.

"Just watch, kora," Colonello sent back.

Arashi leaned closer to me and whispered, "Reborn just said that's what he'd be doing, right?"

"Yeah, but I think they both try to one-up each other a lot," I replied, "Of course that's just an observation based on their interactions from earlier."

"Wait! Don't leave me out of the discussion!" Tsuna shouted at the two infants. However, Colonello just ignored him and turned towards the cliff's edge.

"Do you see that whirlpool down there? Jump in there, kora," the blond said. I took a peek, and immediately backed up. Heights didn't bother me, but that whirlpool was another story. How it had formed I didn't know but it looked powerful not to mention it was a pretty decent size as well.

"I said to wait! You're just like Reborn. You don't listen to anyone," my friend said. A suddenly thought occurred to me and I turned towards Arashi.

~Arashi's POV~

"Hey, Arashi," I looked up at my sister as she spoke to me in a hushed voice, "Do you think we'll have to take part in this 'training' as well? I mean we did come here with Tsuna, and we were with him when he failed the exam so…"

I pondered Yuzuki's question then shrugged, "Not sure. If we have to I'm sure they'll tell us, but if everything you've said about Reborn is true this will probably be something only Tsuna can do… or rather this will be something Tsuna is forced to do alone."

Yuzuki nodded slightly. Still I didn't blame her for being worried. The fall down to the whirlpool was a fairly good distance, but then to survive the swirling water as well… the feat was nearly impossible. A normal person wouldn't be able to do it and even one who could would probably face a great deal of difficulty. Not only that but there were several other variables to consider as well, like the tides and weight of the person jumping.

Before I could think up any other things to consider Colonello spoke up, "I'm better than Reborn, kora! What do you do when your student doesn't listen, Reborn?"

"This won't end well for Tsuna will it?" I sent the question to my twin. Yuzuki shook her head. With that in mind the two of us took a few steps away from Tsuna as a precaution. Hey, he might be our friend but there was no way either of us was getting between those unusual kids and the brunette.

"I do this," Reborn said from his place at Tsuna's side. How, he'd gotten there so fast was a mystery to me. But that wasn't exactly important since at the moment he was twisting Tsuna's arm behind his back.

"That's why you're too soft, kora! I would have done this!" the eagle perched on Colonello's head flew off as he spoke. Then the blond leapt from his spot and jump kicked Tsuna in the face. I looked over at my twin and thought back to her saying that the two kids in front of us liked to one-up each other, and I was certain that she had been right. For a minute it seemed that Tsuna thought Colonello was worse than Reborn, but the brunette had barely sat up when Reborn started running towards him. As he drew closer Leon jumped from his hat and transformed into a hammer.

"You're too soft, Colonello. I lied. This is what I usually do!" the hammer landed a solid blow to Tsuna's face. Of course the tort- training didn't stop there.

"This is what I really do, too!" Colonello shot back at Reborn before he punched Tsuna right in the back. Before Tsuna could recover Reborn was already on the move again.

"Actually…" the infant hitman began but Tsuna cut him off.

"Stop! Don't compete over me!" the poor boy's face was swollen and bruised. Thankfully, the two stopped but that didn't mean that our friend was out of the woods yet.

"Hey Reborn, just shut up and watch. This is my workplace, kora," Colonello said. But unlike before Reborn didn't seem to be willing to sit back.

"I'll help too. Tsuna is my toy- I mean, student, after all," I glanced at Yuzuki when Reborn said this.

"Did he just…" I trailed off.

Yuzuki nodded, "Yep, you weren't imagining things. He really did say it."

"He finally called me a toy," Tsuna's voice wavered and his eyes were filled with disbelief, "A toy!"

"Just get in there!" the two infants said in unison as they rushed Tsuna. With no hesitation the two kicked the brunette and sent him flying off the cliff and into the waters below. Tsuna's shouts were drowned out (no pun intended) by the water as he sank below the surface a couple times.

"Should we jump too," my sister suddenly asked. I glanced at her. Reborn and Colonello turned to look at us.

"There's no need," the dark haired infant said, but something told me that he was leaving something out and that neither Yuzuki or I would like it. Colonello gave the two of us an appraising look before nodding his agreement. I could tell that my sister was relieved that we wouldn't have to jump in after Tsuna, but she also felt guilty about leaving him to do this all by himself. I felt the same way, but I also figured that neither of the kids would let Tsuna die; he was the heir to the Vongola family after all. Regardless, with Tsuna stuck in the whirlpool Yuzuki and figured it'd be a waste to just sit around and wait for Tsuna to complete this training.

"Hey, Yuzuki…" I said sending my sister a look after Reborn and Colonello had turned their attention back to 'training' Tsuna.

She nodded, "Might as well. I mean we need to get you back in shape after all."

With those words my twin spun around and launched a kick at my head. I ducked down, though force behind her attack ruffled my hair a bit. Giving my sister a small smirk I leapt up flipping backwards as I did hoping to catch her off guard. However, Yuzuki spun to the side avoiding my attack with ease. For a brief moment the two of us watched the other cautiously. It had been quite some time since the two of us had sparred, but we still remembered the other's preferred fighting style and attack patterns. This is why when my twin rushed at me I immediately spun on my heel to catch her fist in my hand after she leapt over me. Yuzuki grinned and I returned it with my own before twisting my body and throwing my sister.

There was no hesitation as she twisted herself around in mid-air to face me. Her feet hit the ground and she slid a little ways kicking up dust as she did. With no pause she was barreling towards me again. As she drew closer she dropped to the ground, and swept her feet at my legs. But I cartwheeled out of the way, after righting myself leapt at her back. She was quick to turn and block the blow I'd been aiming for the pressure point on her neck. We sprang apart eyes locked as we tried to gauge the other's next move. I decided to change it up a bit, and ran towards my sister. I jumped up and over my twin landing on my hands. As Yuzuki began to turn I pushed off the ground and flipped myself around kicking at my sister's head. She blocked the first one, but her eyes widened when my other foot came from the other side.

She barely managed to jump back to safety. That served to boost my confidence; it was rare for one of us to surprise the other during one of our spars.

"Ano, are you two okay," Tsuna's voice pulled our attention away from our own form of training.

"Yep, couldn't be better," I said smiling at the brunette. I lifted my arm and blocked Yuzuki's fist before sending her a look.

"Well, you can't blame me for trying," my sister said with a grin, "That was a pretty good warm up I guess. Next time though we'll have to get serious."

The look Tsuna sent the two of us was priceless. It was clear that he was confused on what our serious was if that little spat wasn't anything more than a warm-up. It wasn't all that different, the only thing we changed was adding in training weapons. Still I guess our mock battles could get pretty intense for those who hadn't even Yuzuki and I fight each other. Before anything else could be said a red train suddenly pulled up.

"Huh?" Tsuna turned to look at the machine as it settled on the tracks. It was a little unexpected but for a train to stop here probably meant that someone else had failed the exam.

"A new trainee has arrived," Colonello said. The doors slid open and surprisingly Gokudera and Yamamoto were the ones who got off.

"Jyuudaime/Tsuna!" the silverette and Yamamoto called out as they left the train and headed towards us.

"Gokudera-kun! Yamamoto! Why are you two here?" Tsuna asked as the two stopped in front of him.

"You didn't come back, so we went to the reception office. And then-" the baseball star was cut off by Gokudera.

"They told us we could get to you through the subway. I'm glad we found you!" Gokudera said smiling.

"It probably would have been better if you hadn't come," Tsuna said with a sigh as he looked over at Colonello and Reborn.

"You can go ahead and train these guys too, Colonello," Reborn said to the blond.

Colonello smiled as he spoke, "They seem like they're worth training, kora. Same with the other two."

I mentally groaned. Reborn had just been waiting for Gokudera and Yamamoto to show up. I should have expected that, after all Gokudera and Yamamoto had followed Tsuna into more dangerous places before now. Though, thinking about it this place could probably be considered fairly dangerous what with Colonello's training methods.

"You four should quickly escape!" Tsuna turned to the four of us. Before any of us could say or do anything a disembodied voice reached our ears.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack! Everyone, please evacuate to the shelters!" the voice was accompanied by sirens. I looked over at my sister confused.

"Enemy attack? What does that mean?" Tsuna asked.

"Is an event about to start or something?" Yamamoto asked. At a normal theme park I'd have agreed, but this was a place built by the mafia so I didn't think that this was an normal event.

"Reborn-san, if they're attacking here…" Gokudera trailed off confirming my suspicions.

"It must be the Calcassa Family," Reborn said completing Gokudera's sentence. Since it was obvious that the Calcassa were a mafia family I had to wonder why they would attack a place that was built by the mafia. Before I could ask my question Tsuna beat me to it.

"Calcassa Family? Why would a mafia family attack Mafia Land? I thought all of the families had given money to by this place," Tsuna said.

"The ones who built this place are families who are aligned with the Vongola. The Calcassa are our enemies," Reborn explained. While that wasn't good news at least my question had been answered.

"Meaning…" Tsuna clutched his head, "A fight's about to start here?!"

Not long after Tsuna had spoken sounds of explosions and screams drifted to our location. This wasn't looking good in the slightest and a quick glance at my sister showed that she was of the same mind as well.

~Yuzuki's POV~

This was a terrible turn of events. I mean sure it kept us from having Colonello train us, though I was surprisingly a little disappointed at that fact. Regardless, I could feel my anger building up slowly. For someone to attack a place like this that was built for vacationing was terrible. Sure most of the patron were probably connected to the mafia in some way, but some might be completely innocent civilians like Haru and Tsuna's mother. That thought alone was enough to make me want to march right up to the person in charge of this attack and give them a good thrashing, not that it was possible, but that how I felt. My thoughts were broken by Tsuna's voice.

"Why did this have to happen during our vacation?!" my friend cried.

"This isn't good, kora," Colonello's voice had us all pausing, "The family responsible for guarding the resort today is at home because it's the anniversary of their boss's death. Right now, there's only a few people on this island that can fight."

"That's terrible," Gokudera said. And for once I agreed with the silverette. Knowing that any innocents wouldn't be protected as well as normal had me glaring in the direction the explosions had come from.

' _The person responsible for this attack had better hope that I don't find them,_ ' I thought venom lacing the unspoken words.

"What do we do?!" Tsuna yelled in a panic.

"Naturally, I won't let them get away with it while I'm here. However, it's nap time," Colonello's voice grew quiet before drifting off.

"Hey!" Tsuna shouted, though that didn't faze the blond.

"Let Colonello be. I'm worried about Mama and the others. Take the subway back to Mafia La…" Reborn trailed off as he too fell asleep.

"You, too?!" Tsuna questioned his tutor. A sweatdrop rolled down my face, but I shook myself and placed a hand on my friends shoulder.

"Let's leave these two for now," I said, "I'm sure they'll join up with us later, but for now let's head back. I'm worried about Nana-san and the others too."

~Little Timeskip~

The five of us were in the process of walking through the tunnels of the subway system. We'd tried boarding the train, but it was quickly made apparent that it wouldn't be moving for a while thanks to a power outage.

"That Reborn…" Tsuna grumbled from his position in front of the rest of us, "Sleeping when something like this happens… And the subway is down because of the power outage."

Yamamoto tried to lighten the mood, "Walking along the rails isn't something you often get to experience. Is this an event as well?"

' _I forgot that he still thinks this is all a game,_ ' I thought smiling in spite of myself.

"Why are you so easy-going, baseball idiot?!" Gokudera growled, "Now, let's hurry, Jyuudaime!"

"Yeah," Tsuna voiced his agreement. Suddenly and almost blinding light shone from before us. I lifted my hand up trying to block the worst of the glare to little effect.

"Is that the exit?" Tsuna asked. I shrugged though I'm sure only Arashi saw me. It probably was since the power was down. Tsuna broke into a run and the rest of us quickly followed. Once we were out of the tunnel, and our eyes had adjusted to the light the five of us stood in awe (well, maybe just four of us).

"Now I see! It exits here!" Gokudera commented. A huge stone building stood before us. It was definitely a castle. Large and small windows dotted the walls and towers of the building. The shingles of the roof were blue. The entry way was huge, and the aesthetic of the entire building left little to be desired.

"The symbol of Mafia Land, Mafia Castle!" Gokudera voice called me away from my observations.

"Wow, that's a big castle!" Yamamoto observed. I saw my brother nodding his head in agreement with the baseball star's words. Of course, this was the only castle I'm sure any of us had ever seen, but I'd bet that it was definitely one of the largest. A suddenly combination of movement and sound caught our little group's attention.

"That's…" Tsuna trailed off for a moment as we all took in the crowd before us, "They all came to evacuate!"

Which, would mean… I scanned the crowd and was relieved to find Tsuna's mother and the others standing off to the side and perfectly safe. Just as I was about to point them out Tsuna's mother raised her hand and called out to the brunette.

"Tsuna!" her voice carried over the milling people behind and next to them.

"Mom!" Tsuna seemed both surprised and relieved to see them all here. Unfortunately, for Gokudera that meant that Bianchi was here as well. He spotted his sister, and quickly ducked behind Tsuna.

"Tsuna-san, you're safe!" Haru said as the group walked up to us.

"You were late, so we were worried, Tsuna-nii," Fuuta said.

"Sorry for worrying you all," I said a smile slipping onto my face.

"I'm glad everyone's safe," Tsuna followed my apology. His face also sported a smile as did Yamamoto's and my brother's.

"Lambo-san wanted to swim more," the boy said from his spot next to I-Pin.

"I-Pin, too!" the girl echoed him.

Tsuna's mother spoke up then, "There's something even more fun coming up! Tsu-kun, we're going to defeat the enemy mafia in this castle, right?" it was here the Tsuna had a small freak out, "What a fun event!" his worries were eased by this statement, "Me and the rest of the women are going to make food in the castle."

"Leave it to us," Bianchi said with a wave before the group that had stayed behind headed into the large building.

"Bianchi's gonna cook, too?!" Tsuna cried out, "Then what about you Yuzuki?"

"Me... um, well I'm gonna stay out here and help you guys," I said, "Besides I'm not much of a cook."

Gokudera stood still clutching his stomach slightly, "Jyuudaime, what do we do?"

"What do you mean, 'What do we do'?" Tsuna asked before he caught sight of several groups of people that stood out immensely.

"We the Difo Family that runs Asia, will take command of this battle," a man with his hair pulled into a topknot said. He was standing at the head of a whole group of men who also wore their hair in topknots. I figure that he was the leader of the family or at least a higher up. This group was also wearing traditional Asian clothes; I really couldn't tell which country they hailed from.

"No," a man with gelled hair and a nasally voice said, "We, the Beccio Family who uphold tradition and formality within the alliance, is fit to lead," the other members of this group were all dressed in suits. Their hair was gelled like the first guy, and I had to admit that they were exactly how I imagined a mafia family to look.

"Hey, hey," a deep voice pulled our focus away from the traditional family, "You've got to be kidding me. What do you plan on doing without the Neuvo Family?"

The man that had spoken looked very American to me. In fact this group was dressed more like gangsters than mafia members.

"You two, stay out of this!" the Difo Family representative shouted at the others.

"You wanna fight?!" the guy speaking for the Neuvo Family shot back. Tsuna's face had morphed into one of complete fear. I couldn't blame him for that though. These guys had been at this business a lot longer than any of us. Unfortunately, Gokudera had to speak up and bring all of their attention onto us. I facepalmed.

~Arashi's POV~

"Our Jyuudaime is the one who is most fit to be the boss here!" Gokudera's voice was strong and carried a sense of conviction. He gestured to Tsuna and I sent the brunette a sympathetic look.

"Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna cried out not liking all the attention on him.

"Jyuudaime," the man of the Difo Family said glaring at Tsuna from the corner of his eye.

"Which little family is he supposed to be from?" the Beccio Family guy asked. Of course the silverette of our group wasn't going to let these comments go.

"The Vongola Family!" Gokudera growled at the three who had been arguing. That when the murmuring started. As it was the entire atmosphere in the courtyard completely changed. The men of all three families all bowed in sync.

"We apologize for our rudeness!" the head guy of the Beccio Family said. It was clear this was a turn of events that Tsuna was not expecting, but Reborn had said that those who had made this place possible were all allied to the Vongola Family. Which would mean that they would adhere to the wishes of members of said family.

"Now we know who our leader is gonna be!" the Neuvo Family head stated. Tsuna jolted in shock.

"Tradition, formality, size and force; in all attributes, Vongola is superior," the man in charge of the Beccio Family said.

"Wait!" Tsuna tried to protest, but he was cut off by the head of the Difo Family.

"Everyone! Follow our leader, Vongola Jyuudaime!" at his words the rest of the men around us cheered.

"Huh?!" Tsuna cried out in surprise and terror. Yamamoto spoke from his side smiling.

"I told ya," the baseball star said, "You're our leader."

Gokudera nodded a little, "Of course! There's no one more fit to be the boss!"

The 'happy' little moment that was going on was interrupted by the arrival of a group of black clad soldiers. The three formerly arguing families immediately took stances of readiness.

"Here they come," Gokudera observed, "Let's just whip through them. Explode!" the silverette shouted as he threw multiple sticks of dynamite at the approaching men. The group was sent flying. Members of the families allied to our own started shooting at those of the Calcassa Family. Stray bullets flew towards us. Tsuna was running in circles like a chicken with its head cut off, while Yamamoto was dodging them all with inhuman ease.

"What are the rules of this game?" the tallest person in our group asked. I glanced at my sister from where we sat in a tree.

"Don't get hit," my twin said, "and take out the opposition!"

Having said that my sister stood, and leapt through the trees until she found a smaller group of Calcassa members who seemed to be taking cover to reload their weapons. She dropped down into their midst startling them.

~Yuzuki's POV~

The men surrounding me had jumped a good foot and a half into the air when I'd dropped out of the tree. But these guys weren't part of the mafia for nothing. They abandoned their guns and raised their fists. I smiled, and without waiting for them to completely ready themselves I struck. I back-flipped and hit one of the men square on the chin sending him reeling back. Then landing on my hands I allowed gravity to pull me down before I sprung back up, twisting around and kicking at one of the other men. It was the same move my brother had surprised me with. So, when the guy focused all his attention on blocking the leg he could see he missed the other one entirely.

He staggered back as I fell towards the ground, but I was quick to catch myself and fell into a ready position. The men were hanging back watching me warily. A grin split my face at the realization. These people saw me as a threat that was both good and bad. Good, because it was likely that they wouldn't try to come at me but bad because their tactics would likely change as well. Suddenly, one of the men crumpled to the ground revealing my brother standing behind him. Arashi had probably struck the man's pressure points as he'd fallen from the tree. The arrival of my twin provided a good distraction as I leapt atop one of the guy's shoulder's and pushed off him causing him to fall to the ground. I caught hold of a tree branch and pulled myself into the leafy canopy waiting for the right moment to strike.

I didn't have to wait for long as one of the men backed up under the tree I was in keeping an eye on Arashi. With no warning I dropped from my hiding spot, and took the man down with gravity's help. Then spring off the man's back I landed a solid kick to another's gut. Winded he backed away only to receive a karate chop to the neck rendering him unconscious.

"Really nee-san," Arashi chided, "Do you have to be so reckless?"

"I wasn't being reckless. If I was I would have gone after the men shooting and not reloading their guns," I sent back, "Besides I knew you would be far behind."

My brother sighed, and while I was sure his lecturing would continue later he remained quiet for now. Before our little battle with the Calcassa family members could continue they all began retreating. Some of the members from the other three families chased after them, but were sent flying. Something about that set me on edge so I retreated back to the others with my brother close behind.

"Someone's back there!" a member of the Difo family said. A couple of trees fell as the men who'd chased after the Calcassa men hit the ground. Standing amidst the debris was a child wearing a purple motorbike suit and a helmet with an octopus design on it. A man to the left of our group suddenly spoke.

"That's the military commander of the Calcassa Family, Skull," he said.

"That little guy?" Tsuna asked. Had he learned nothing from Reborn or Colonello?

"There's no mistaking it," the man who'd revealed the infant's identity said, "That purple pacifier is the symbol of an Arcobaleno."

"Arcobaleno?" Tsuna's voice was filled with confusion. Then a thoughtful look appeared on my friend's face. I wondered if he was thinking the same thing as me. During his fight with Mukuro, the heterochromatic boy had called Reborn that. Until now that had been the only time the term had been used.

"Arcobaleno is the rainbow! It's also the term used for the nine strongest infants in the mafia," the man explained.

"There's nine of them?!" Tsuna shouted. And we'd now met three; Reborn, Colonello and Skull. That meant that there were six more out there somewhere. With Reborn and Colonello already having demonstrated their strength I had to wonder how strong all the others were.

"It doesn't matter who it is. I'll defeat him!" Gokudera yelled pulling out several stick of dynamite. He wasted no time in throwing them at his opponent. But though it should have been a direct shot the explosives landed on either side of the kid where they exploded.

"They were deflected!" Yamamoto said surprised. Tsuna suddenly lifted a hand an pointed towards something just behind Skull.

"There's something behind him!" my brunette friend shouted, "An octopus?!" his shock was evident as the dust cleared revealing a huge cephalopod. The thing had bits of armor on it, though I didn't know how much protection that would offer the creature with the placement of each metal plate.

"I've heard rumors that Skull controls a giant armored octopus!" the man from earlier said.

"You've got to be kidding!" Tsuna shouted. It was quickly made apparent that the rumors were true when Skull moved his hand and the octopus grabbed several men off the ground, and then threw them.

"The octopus's movements match that baby's finger movements," Yamamoto said, "Wow! How does he do that?!"

"This is no time to be impressed!" Tsuna shouted at his friend.

"So who's next?" Skull asked. The octopus's tentacles started reaching out towards all of us that opposed him and the Calcassa. Some of the men started backing away, but before anything could happen a very familiar voice sounded from somewhere. I hadn't been happier to hear someone in my life, even if that person was Reborn.

"You haven't eaten that octopus yet?" the hitman asked pulling everyone's attention to a tree off to the side, "I bet it tastes great."

The hitman jumped down from the tree landing in front of our alliance. Tsuna seemed pretty relieved by his tutor's appearance.

"Reborn! You're finally awake," Tsuna said, "We're in big trouble."

"Why is Reborn-senpai here?!" Skull's voice suddenly brought our attention back to him. Needless to say most of us were surprised that Reborn knew this guy.

"Ciaossu. It's been a while, Skull," Reborn said, "Didn't you notice that your pacifier was shining?" the other glanced down briefly but said nothing, "Since we're here, let's have a drink… Along with some octopus sashimi."

"Don't be stupid," Skull said, "I'm under orders from the Calcassa Family boss right now! You are an enemy who shall be defeated!"

"You're always running errands for other people," Reborn commented.

Skull didn't waste time retorting, "You're the only one that's ever been used as an errand boy! Stop messing with me!"

Several things happened in the moment after. I wondered in what universe Reborn could ever be an errand boy. Skull's hand moved, and the octopus grabbed Reborn and lifted him into the air. Tsuna let out a cry as his teacher was captured. Despite the fact that it was probably extremely hard move in the cephalopod's grip Reborn managed to wriggle his hand out, and catch Leon who had turned into a gun. He shot twice in quick succession. The first was blocked by the octopus while Skull blocked the other with his own hand.

There was something odd about the whole thing though. No blood came from the places the bullets had hit on both man and beast. So if that were any indication the bullets must have been of the special variety.

"Nice, quick shooting! But if I have one hand, that's more than enough!" Skull said making his hand into a fist. The octopus's grip tightened around Reborn and he dropped Leon.

"Reborn!" Tsuna's voice was drenched in concern.

"This isn't good," Gokudera muttered.

"Kid!" Yamamoto shouted.

"Will he be okay?" Arashi asked.

I looked over at my twin, "I think so, but… well, have to be prepared just in case."

"How do you like it? I'm not the old Skull!" the helmeted Arcobaleno said, "Die, Reborn!" however, the command was ignored, and Reborn managed to slip free, "What are you doing?! Why won't you move?!"

"He seems confused," Reborn said, "I bet he's never seen your left hand like that."

And it wasn't an understatement. Skull's left hand had doubled… maybe tripled in size.

"What is this?!" Skull shouted in confusion.

"I see. He used the Fist Bullet," Tsuna said, so I'd been right about the bullet being a special one, "The octopus doesn't recognize the command and can't act!"

"Now it's my turn!" Reborn said leaping down and punching Skull's helmeted face. The blow was enough to send him flying back into a tree. He crashed into the trunk hard and slid down to the ground where he lay unmoving for a few moments.

"Reborn's so strong!" Tsuna said in amazement.

"Or maybe this Skull guy is just weak," I heard my brother mutter. I nodded in agreement, though I figured both views had a lot of merit.

"So it's come to this. Attack the castle from the battleships!" Skull said.

"That's impossible," Reborn told his junior, "Colonello should be awake by now."

"Colonello-senpai is here, too?!" Skull's voice had a bit of fear lacing it. Several explosions came from the direction of the beach. A voice with a static sound to it sound from Skull's helmet, but it was impossible for me to hear what was said.

"Colonello's rifle must have gone off," Reborn said. Tsuna got a scared look on his face.

"So he's super strong, too," Tsuna murmured, "Instead of taking a nap, why didn't you do that from the start?!"

"Come on. You didn't even fight," Reborn commented, Tsuna seemed like he found the whole not fighting thing odd before the hitman continued, "I'll punish my own errand boy."

Both Skull and Tsuna freaked about Reborn's comment. Though that was understandable since the punishments Reborn can concoct are scary to even think about.

~The Following Day; Arashi's POV~

The rest of yesterday was pretty uneventful after the Calcassa Family's attack. We'd reunited with the group in the castle and checked into some rooms. Honestly hadn't slept that good in a while. Now Tsuna, Gokudera and Yamamoto were dressed in swim trunks getting ready to head to the beach. However, Yuzuki and I had been told that we'd be leaving today. So it was clear that Reborn hadn't passed the message onto the three boys.

"Yesterday's even sure was fun!" Yamamoto said. Tsuna's let out a sigh. It was pretty amazing that the baseball star still thought that everything was a game after all that had happened to him and the others. Still maybe it wasn't such a bad thing for him to be oblivious.

"We took care of those Calcassa guys," Gokudera said proudly which had Tsuna turning towards him, "It's safe now, Jyuudaime!"

"We can finally enjoy the resort!" Tsuna cheered with a smile.

"Hai!" Gokudera said in agreement to the brunette.

"Tsu-kun! What are you doing?" Tsuna's mother called out to him, "The boat is about to embark!"

"No!" Tsuna cried out upset.

Bianchi glanced over at us which of course had Gokudera on the ground clutching his stomach, "Hurry up."

Reborn suddenly walked up to Tsuna who had fallen to his knees in despair, "If you want to stay here, I can put in a good word with Colonello. I'll ask him to train you good and hard."

"No!" Tsuna cried tears streaming down his face. I felt bad for my friend, but there wasn't much that could be done here. So, instead we all made our way to the cruise ship, and boarded it. As much I'd liked this island I wanted to go home, and see my family again since Mom, Dad and Haruto would be getting back tomorrow. With that thought in mind I boarded the boat happily.

~EXTRA; Third Person POV~

As the boat began sailing for home Yuzuki let out a sigh from her place at the stern of the ship. Her eyes wandered over the island as it grew further and further away. Concerned about his friend Tsuna walked up to the dark haired girl.

"Hey, are you okay Yuzuki?" Tsuna asked. The girl looked over at him and nodded slightly.

"Yeah, just a little disappointed that we had to leave like that," Yuzuki said turning her gaze back to the island, "I really wanted to spend a bit more time there."

"I know what you mean," Tsuna said, "We didn't even get any beach time, and we weren't able to ride any of the attractions either."

"Well, yeah that's a bummer too, but I kinda wanted to do some training. Under Mafia Land would have been the perfect place for that," Yuzuki said eyes still fixed on the horizon, "I was kind of hoping that Colonello would've helped with that."

Off to the side Tsuna paled as he looked at his friend. He'd thought at least three of his friends would be normal, but here Yuzuki was saying she wanted Colonello, one of the Arcobaleno, to train her. Suddenly a hand was placed on his shoulder. He turned his head to see Arashi.

"Don't mind her," the boy said, "she gets like this when she thinks about training… well, some times. She must have been pretty impressed by Colonello to even consider asking him to train her. Though, I doubt she would have gone through with it."

Tsuna tilted his head in confusion, "Why do say that?"

"Well…" Arashi trailed off for a moment, "There are a few reasons. Colonello seems to be an expert in guns and military tactics, but Yuzuki and I are both more martial arts-esque fighters. Her training with him probably wouldn't work out too well, unless she intended to dodge bullets. There are a few other minor reasons, but there is one main one…"

"Main one?" Tsuna questioned the twin of his friend. Arashi turned and looked Tsuna right in the eyes.

"Yes, the main reason she wouldn't have trained with Colonello is the same reason why she won't ask Reborn to help her either," the dark haired boy said a serious light in his blue-gray eyes.

"Wh-what's the reason?" the brunette asked even as he broke out into a cold sweat.

"He's too much of a Spartan," Arashi said gravely before brightening his tone, "And the only master we have is our father, though I suppose that's two reasons."

Tsuna nearly fell in surprise when the second part of Arashi's statement finally came through, "Your father is you master?"

"Master, sensei… the list goes on, but he's the one that taught us how to fight. Apparently, he learned from someone very skilled, and he wanted us to be able to protect ourselves. So pretty much all of our family knows those martial arts we used on the island," Arashi said, "That's why Yuzuki gets so into fighting, and training at times. She wants to make our father proud, but I worry that it'll get her in trouble on day. That's why I'm glad she has friends like you and the others because I know that you'll be there for her even if I can't be?"

After saying that Arashi joined his sister where she stood looking out over the endless blue sea. Tsuna stared at the two for a moment before making a promise to himself. A promise that he would always be there for all of his friends no matter what.

~EXTRA TWO; Third Person POV~

Yuzuki grabbed the pendant of her necklace and twirled it around absently. After looking at the sea for a while after the island had disappeared from view the dark haired girl had gone into the lounge area and sat looking out a window. A sudden sound caught her attention and she looked up to see Haru looking at her.

"Hey, Haru," Yuzuki said, "Do you need something?"

"Not really, but Haru was wondering if you'd figured anything out about the person who got you that necklace?" the brunette girl asked. Yuzuki shook her head.

"To be perfectly honest I haven't given it much thought. After everything that happened at Mafia Land… well, my mind was on other things," blue-gray eyes locked with brown as she continued, "So, do you really think that a secret admirer bought this for me?"

"It's the only possible explanation," Haru stated matter-of-factly, "If it was from someone you knew then they would have said something by now right? And there was only a note with your name on it, and nothing else to tell you who it was from, right?"

"Well… yeah," Yuzuki said. Haru smiled triumphantly.

"So, Haru and Bianchi-chan must be right then!" the brown eyed girl cheered.

' _Why did I even bother to ask,_ ' Yuzuki asked herself silently. Even with Haru's proof the dark haired girl refused to believe that she had a secret admirer.

' _I don't have time for something like that. Besides I pretty sure that most guys don't want to date a girl that could probably beat them up,_ ' Yuzuki muttered internally.

* * *

 **Me: Okay so… yes, I'm still alive and so is this FanFiction. That being said *bows deeply* I apologize for the long wait! I really wanted to update sooner, but my laptop was being difficult… still is really; I can't use the bottom row of keys or spacebar at all any more. Thankfully I have a fix, so I should be able to update more often now. I really am sorry for making you all wait so long for this chapter. So that's why the two EXTRAs were added to this chapter. Though the last one… doesn't seem all that good to me.**

 **Yuzuki: Well, everyone has good moments…**

 **Arashi: And bad ones.**

 **Me: True enough I suppose. So yeah once again I apologize for the wait, and I hope you can all forgive me and enjoy reading this chapter. *mumbles* I hope none of the characters are OOC.**

 **Ben: I'm sure things are fine. So… you have a guest today to say the disclaimer, right?**

 **Me: Oh yeah, that's right. Thanks for reminding me Ben. With us today is Colonello, and he agreed to say the disclaimer for me.**

 **Colonello: So I just have to say you don't own this show, right?**

 **Me: Yep, that's about it. I really appreciate you agreeing to do this for me.**

 **Colonello: Glad to be of service, kora! CloudSkylark18 doesn't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or the characters within said show. She does however, own her OCs and the plot when it concerns them, kora!**

 **Me: Thanks so much. I'm still accepting guesses for all those things I wrote about in the Author's note, and there's a poll up about the pairings. So if you'd like to take a guess or choose a character please feel free to do so.**

 **Jenna: With that please leave a review down in the box below, and we'll see you all next time.**


	26. Invasion of Privacy

Invasion of Privacy

~Yuzuki's POV~

After the trip to Mafia Land things had been mostly quiet. There were a couple days that really stood out, and both had to do with Tsuna swimming. The first had our group heading to the public pool to help Tsuna 'remember' how to swim, though he actually hadn't ever been able to swim before then. Not that anyone but Arashi and I believed our friend. That entire day was weird beyond belief, but the two things that topped them all was Gokudera's… _interesting_ invention and the killer dolphin provided by Reborn; yeah, even I have no idea why the Vongola Family even had a dolphin in the first place, let alone a killer one. The only good thing that came of the day was that Tsuna finally learned how to swim.

Then a couple days after we went to the beach, but we weren't there to have fun. Instead we had gone to do some work in order to pay off the damages that had been cause while we were at the pool. And those were pretty extensive, which of course meant that they costed a good deal to fix. Still there was an entire race that Tsuna, Gokudera and Yamamoto took part in. It was basically to defend the honor of the girls of our group, myself included. The guys they were up against though were cheaters, and they even ignored a young girl's plight just to win the stupid thing. So, Tsuna had to go and be the hero. Unfortunately the girl didn't believe that Tsuna was the person that had saved her since she'd seen him in his Dying Will Mode. But those were the only really memorable days.

The day after the beach incident had been normal. Arashi and I had walked to school and met up with our friends. We went about our day with no incidents; though I'm sure I narrowly avoided a confrontation with Hibari. I'd walked past the reception room when one of the Disciplinary Committee members had flown out the door, and landed on the floor completely unconscious. Hibari followed him out, and looked completely murderous; probably the committee member had done something stupid that made the Chairman upset. I'd tried to make myself scarce but the prefect had spotted me before I could make my get away. Thankfully, he'd simply said 'get to class before I bite you to death'. So naturally I'd done just that. And that was the extent of the school day. Now Arashi and I were getting ready for bed.

"I swear nee-san you must have the devil's own luck," my twin said. I shrugged.

"I don't know about that," I said rubbing the back of my head, "But that would make some sense if it were true. Regardless, I think we should probably get some sleep. Who knows what tomorrow will be like?"

"True," my brother murmured in agreement, "Night nee-san."

"Night," I sent back pulling the covers up under my chin as I did. As I closed my eyes a sense of wrongness, but also familiarity washed over me.

~In Yuzuki's Mindscape~

I opened my eyes to find myself in an empty field. It wasn't hard for me to figure out where I was. This place was my Mindscape, though I hadn't been here in a long while. The last time had been when…

"Kufufu, it's nice to see you again Hisoka Yuzuki," I quickly spun around to face Mukuro. His face held the same self-satisfied expression it had last time. My eyes narrowed into a glare, and I shifted my stance to allow myself time to act should it become necessary.

"What are you doing here?" I spat out the question; voice laced with venom. The intruder of my mind wasn't fazed at all by my hostility; instead he simply smiled at me. The gesture just put me more on edge than I had been. Nothing good could come from that smile, or the predatory look in his eyes. However, the way he was sitting seemed to show that he wasn't here for a fight, though I figured this could be an illusion of his to put me off guard.

"Oya, oya you don't seem very happy to see me," the heterochromatic boy said.

I made sure to lace my voice with extra sarcasm as I spoke, "I can't imagine where you got that idea from. I mean it's not as if you're invading my privacy or anything," all I got in return was a smirk; I glowered back at him, "Now I'll ask you one last time: Why are you here?"

"Can't one friend visit another when they feel like it?" Mukuro asked.

"I suppose so, but I don't ever remember calling you my friend at all," I said, "Even if I did I wouldn't have meant it in the slightest after what you did to Tsuna and the others."

"Kufufu, that's not very nice and after I came all this way," Mukuro said; he might have been believable if he'd lost his ever present smirk.

I rolled my eyes, "Yes well, I didn't ask you to be here. Frankly, I don't want you here at all. I was quite enjoying the time you weren't present. Guess I should have known that the good times wouldn't last," I sighed dramatically, "Now since you haven't given me any good reason for you being here I'll have to ask you to leave. If you refuse I'll have to use force to remove you."

"You truly are interesting Hisoka Yuzuki," my intruder said.

"I don't want to hear that coming from you," I growled.

"Oya, then perhaps you like to hear it from someone else," Mukuro said, "Maybe from the one that gave you that little trinket you're wearing."

I knew what he was talking about. The tiger pendant necklace; I must have been wearing it enough that it just became a part of me, which would explain why it showed up on my inner self.

"I'd rather not hear it from them either," I said with no hesitation. Mukuro quirked an eyebrow.

"Oh, and why is that?" the blue haired boy said.

My face was perfectly blank as I replied, "I don't have to tell you anything. Now will you be leaving peacefully or do we have to do this the hard way?"

"Kufufu, I'd rather not leave. After all we never finished our conversation from last time," Mukuro said smiling that unnervingly genuine smile I'd seen last time, "I was so looking forward to our chat about Hisoka Arashi."

"I told you…" my voice grew dangerously low before reaching a height I'd never thought possible, "TO NEVER SPEAK HIS NAME AGAIN!"

Just like last time the wind began to blow tearing at the grass and our clothes. However, the wind was howling this time as well drowning out any words we might have said to each other. The wind swirled around us; hitting us from all sides. I leapt forward intent on teaching the boy before me a lesson. Just like the last time Mukuro smirked as he materialized a trident. He blocked my kick with the staff of his weapon. Growling I jumped backwards eyes never leaving my foe. Mukuro spun his staff around before slamming the dull end onto the ground. Pillars of fire burst from the ground and I was forced to dodge in between them.

I began closing in on my opponent, ignoring the illusions as I went. I ducked as the trident was swung at my head before springing up and punching the heterochromatic boy in the face. He jumped away from me the illusion dissipating as he rubbed his jaw. He'd probably have a bruise if injuries transferred to the real world; if not well that would be disappointing. Still it had been satisfying to hit him at least once. Unfortunately, he seemed to take on a more serious persona as he gazed at me through mismatched eyes. I shifted into a more defensive stance as I watched my opponent cautiously. With no warning he rushed towards me.

He was faster now, and a flame glowed from his right eye. A memory kicked in; this was the Fourth Path, that of the Asura, Mukuro's combat skill. I dodged to the side narrowly avoiding the prongs of his trident. Using my momentum I spun aiming a kick at my opponents back. He turned to the side and my attack passed him by harmlessly. Irked I lifted my right foot as my left touched down in the hopes of catching Mukuro off guard. However, my attack lacked the power of the first and Mukuro deflected the blow with his trident. The wind was starting to die down a bit as I forced myself to calm down and watch my opponent's moves.

"Oya, seems like the wind has calmed," Mukuro's voice broke my concentration. That was all it took. Suddenly, my feet were swept out from under me and I landed on the ground with a thud. Before I could pick myself up I found myself bound by vines. I glared up at the boy behind this. It was obvious that my bonds were illusions, but as before they were much more real and I wasn't being given any time in which to convince myself that they weren't really there.

"Now, why don't we have a civil conversation?" I glared at my captor feeling a sense of déjà vu, "Kufufu, scary as always Hisoka Yuzuki."

"Feel free to run away at any time with your tail between your legs, I won't judge," I hissed out. Mukuro laughed.

"I'll keep that in mind," heterochromatic eyes bored into my blue-gray ones, "So, as much as I want to hear about your connection to Hisoka Arashi," I snarled at him but he ignored me, "there's something else that interests me much more right now."

"Oh, and what might that be?" I asked. Mukuro leaned down, and I swallowed thickly as he reached out and grasped the tiger pendant.

"Just this," he said, "You didn't have it the last time I visited. So, where'd you get it from?"

"Why does it matter to you? It's just a necklace plain and simple," I said. The look he gave me was unreadable. Nothing gave away his thoughts at all.

Finally he spoke, "If that were true you wouldn't be so protective of it."

"I'm not protective of it," I tried to deny his words but even I didn't believe myself, "I just don't want it to get damaged before I can return it."

"Return it?" I cursed my slip up, "So, then it was a gift. An admirer's declaration of his feelings?"

"Why does every body seem to think that? I don't have an admirer! There's just no way that's possible!" I shouted in frustration. Mukuro laughed, and I glared at him.

"As amusing as this conversation has been, our time together is over for now," the blue haired boy said. He genuinely sounded disappointed. Regardless I couldn't be happier that time was up. I was released from my bonds, and stood warily watching Mukuro.

"Since you said 'for now' I'm assuming I won't be rid of you any time soon will I?" I asked rhetorically.

"Kufufu, of course not. I don't intend to leave you any time soon," Mukuro said, "After all you interest me a great deal Yuzuki-chan."

With that he was gone. I stared after at the spot he'd only just been occupying before a thought hit me.

"Yuzuki-chan…" I felt my teeth grind against each other as my hand turned into fists, "WHO SAID YOU COULD BE SO FAMILIAR WITH ME YOU PSYCHO?!"

My shout echoed through my head as the world around me began to fade. But below that I was sure that I heard Mukuro's laughter, and that made me even angrier.

* * *

 **Me: Wow, so that was fun. It's been a while since the last Mindscape Chapter hasn't it?**

 **Yuzuki: Yeah, it has. That being said hope you all enjoyed the chapter. So, who's supposed to say the disclaimer today?**

 **Me: Hmm… that's a good question.**

 **Mukuro: Kufufu, why don't I take care of it since I'm here?**

 **Me: That'd be great. How do you feel about that Yuzuki?**

 **Yuzuki: As long as he leaves after saying it I don't have a problem.**

 **Me: Alright then. So, please feel free to take care of the disclaimer then Mukuro.**

 **Mukuro: Kufufu, as you wish. CloudSkylark18 doesn't own KHR or the characters of said series. She does own her OCs and the plot when it concerns them.**

 **Yuzuki: Good it's done now leave.**

 **Mukuro: Oya, oya how very cold. But my times up anyways. See you around Yuzuki-chan *vanishes into random patch of fog*.**

 **Yuzuki: I NEVER SAID YOU COULD BE SO FAMILIAR WITH ME! AND NO ONE ELSE DID EITHER!**

 **Me: Well, since Yuzuki is preoccupied I'd like to thank you all for reading this chapter of Two Sides of the Wind (REWRITE). So please leave a review down below, and let me know what you thought. Oh, and if any of you caught the little reference I threw in let me know that as well. Until next time, sayonara minna!**


	27. Relaxing is Impossible

Relaxing is Impossible

~While Yuzuki was in her Mindscape; Third Person POV~

The silence of the night was broken the metallic sound of clanging metal. Across the tops of buildings sparks flew. The moonlight revealed two people crossing blades. Dust was kicked up as one left a crater in the roof they were fighting on when the other dodged. More sparks flew as they continued to clash. A blue light flickered from the smaller of the two's head. The blades locked before the smaller pushed the other away. However, the taller leapt up using the force from the push to gain extra height; silhouetted by the moon the taller swung his sword sending out a shock wave. A huge explosion occurred as the attack made contact with the roof a cloud of dust billowing up into the air.

The other managed to dodge, and crossed their arms over their face doing their best to avoid being blinded. They threw their weapon towards their opponent who was quick to dodge. It was a good thing that they did otherwise they would've suffered the same fate as the chain-link fence behind them, which had been completely blasted apart. The one with the flickering blue light on their forehead caught their weapon as it spun back to them while their opponent landed neatly on the top of the small building that protected the stairs.

"VOIII! You! Why are you in Japan?! If you don't spill it, I'm going to fillet you!" the one on the building yelled with an agitated tone to their voice that was distinctly male, "Answer me, d*** it!"

"I have no reason to answer!" the other shot back. While higher in pitch it was clear that the other was male as well, just younger in years than the one they were fighting. The younger then leaped at the older the blue light flickering from its spot on his forehead.

"You're in no position to be defiant!" the older of the two shouted before parrying his opponents blade. The force of the block sent the younger flying over the rooftop, and out into the open air. Shock and fear had the boy's body tensing, but with no loss in movement the boy slammed his weapon into the wall. He clung to his Metal Edge in desperation. His opponent landed above him looking down at him with an sir of superiority about him.

"See? You're weak," the elder said. The boy started to reach up with his right hand, but something slipped out of his pocket. In an instant his hand snatched the item before it could fall. He glared up at the man he was facing as the other laughed at him.

' _I can't. I can't. I can't lose._ _Not here!_ ' the boy thought still clinging tightly to his Metal Edge* and the thing that had fallen from his pocket. A short distance away two figures stood silhouetted by the moon watching the slightly one-sided fight.

"Do you think we should help?" one of the figures glanced over at the other as they spoke. The voice had a slight lilt to it. The other figure shook their head.

"No, he told us not to get involved unless absolutely necessary," as this one spoke their eyes never left the two fighters, "Though it is a little annoying; his opponent looks like he'd be fun to fight. But orders are orders and I'd rather live a little longer."

The first figure nodded, and turned their attention back to the opponents below them, "The longer we remain undetected the better for our superiors, too. Looks like they're moving again."

"Yep," the other said, "Let's get going," with that the two jumped down from their perch and began following the two fighters; their footsteps silent but swift.

~The Next Day; Yuzuki's POV~

Arashi and I had actually caught up with Tsuna and the others on the way to school. I tried to listen to the conversation they were having, but the intrusion of my mind by Mukuro had me just as drowsy as the last time. I did gather that Tsuna's father was supposed to be coming home soon.

"It's great that your old man's coming back!" Yamamoto's cheery voice pierced the fog that surrounded me. I yawned, and shook my head in an attempt to wake myself up further. My brother looked over at me concerned. He'd woken up to find me on the floor of our shared room, but before he could wake me up I'd sprung to my feet shouting at empty air. That was all I needed to know to realize that I'd been shouting at Mukuro at the same time. I swore to myself that the next time Mukuro _visited_ my Mindscape that I'd kill the Vendice prisoner.

"Well, yeah," Tsuna didn't sound all that excited about the return of his father.

"So the Tenth's father is going to be here? Once he returns, I, the Tenth's right-hand man, must be the first to greet him!" Gokudera on the other hand was ecstatic. Heck, he was so pumped up that he struck a dramatic pose. I merely rolled my eyes, then yawned.

"No, that's fine," Tsuna said to the silverette as he waved his hands around, "You don't have to do it for that irresponsible guy."

Yamamoto laughed, "What do you mean, 'irresponsible'?"

"The things he says and does have always been insane. When I was little, he was rarely home. Once I asked him what he did for a living," Tsuna said. Apparently, his father had told him that he flew around the world to manage traffic at construction sites.

"All around the world?" Gokudera asked dumbfounded.

"That's pretty wild," Yamamoto added his own opinion.

"Doesn't it sound suspicious?!" the brunette asked incredulously. Gokudera tried to pretend that nothing about the explanation was weird.

"Are you really trying to play that card?" Arashi asked the silverette who in turn glowered at my twin.

I rolled my eyes, "It sounds pretty far-fetched to me, but that's only because I'm at the age where fibs like that just don't cut it for an explanation," I finished with a yawn leaning up against my brother for support.

"I didn't really get it when I was little," Tsuna started, "Now that I think of it, he always said weird things. Besides, it's just unthinkable that he couldn't manage to return once in two years. Even if that kind of father comes back now…"

"Jyuudaime…" Gokudera trailed off at a loss for words. Yamamoto hummed in thought.

"Hey! Want to go hang out somewhere?" the baseball star suddenly asked.

"Nice going, baseball idiot!" Gokudera said suddenly, "Let's do that, Jyuudaime!"

I wondered briefly through the haze of sleep if the world was about to end. It was the first time I'd ever heard Gokudera agree with something Yamamoto said. Then again as much as Gokudera claimed to dislike Yamamoto he still hung out with him. I suppose that's exactly what friendship is; being able to say certain things and everyone knows that you don't really mean them.

"Huh?" Tsuna questioned the silverette.

Gokudera placed his hands on his hips and closed his eyes before speaking, "It's best not to worry about family issues too much."

"Gokudera-kun…" Tsuna wasn't able to say anything more as the bomber flashed the rest of us a grin and gave us a thumbs up.

"My family is messed up beyond recognition!" I sweatdropped, though I had to give my friend props; the smile never left his face, though I wasn't sure if that was bad or good. Apparently, Tsuna was of the same mind as me.

"So let's go hang out," Yamamoto said instantly making the awkward atmosphere dissipate, at least a little.

"But school…" Tsuna tried to protest, but Yamamoto cut him off.

"Today's a review day, right?" the tallest person in our group asked.

"Oh, yeah. I'd almost forgotten," my brother said. I nodded. That was right today we just simply would be reviewing the things we had learned over the course of the year.

"It's Sunday all around the world. It's important to relax from time to time!" Gokudera said.

"Oh, since its Sunday, let's call everyone!" Yamamoto suggested. By all I had to assume that meant the rest of our strange group of friends. Still it would be nice to just hang around with the others and relax.

~A Little Later~

Of course I'd forgotten that relaxing with our little group wasn't quite as carefree as I was thinking it would be. With Lambo along I was clutching at my head trying to push the growing headache away.

"Lambo-san's family is coming through!" the young boy cheered as he ran ahead of us. I-Pin wasn't all that far behind him. I glared after the two kids through bleary eyes; I wasn't really mad at them, but sleep deprivation has a way of getting to a person and changing their attitude.

"Geez, I told you not to call the morons," Gokudera grumbled from his spot next to Yamamoto.

Haru was clearly not amused, "Moron? Who are you talking about?"

"And now it's become a crowd," Tsuna sighed.

"Tell, me about it," I said darkly; under-breath. Thankfully, only Arashi heard me. He smiled wryly, and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. I sent him as grateful of a look as I could muster from the haze of sleep that covered me.

~Arashi's POV~

Yuzuki was unusually tired today, in fact I'd only seen her this tired once before and that had been the first day of school for me at Namimori. It was obvious to me that my sister didn't exactly want to be here, though that was the need for sleep talking over anything else. Still, I was worried. Yuzuki seemed even worse than the last time this had happened. She must have had an interesting dream or maybe a nightmare of some sort. I really couldn't focus on what was going on around me and my twin because of the concern I felt for her.

I was able to catch a few things. Lambo hadn't returned after running off ahead of our group. Turns out he'd somehow been mistaken for a pet of some sort and handed over to a pet store. The five year old managed to get in a lot more trouble after that too, which had poor Tsuna apologizing over and over again. I wanted to help out, but Yuzuki hadn't stopped leaning against me in her half-awake state. Truthfully supporting my twin was a little tiring, but I wasn't about to hand off the responsibility to someone else.

We stopped at the arcade for a while after Lambo's little mishaps. Yamamoto, Gokudera and Fuuta went to play some of the games. Haru and Kyoko paired up, but stayed pretty close to Tsuna. The poor brunet was forced to chase after Lambo and I-Pin the entire time we were there. Reborn had gone off by himself to test his luck at the slot machines; I'm pretty sure he might have been asked not to come back since he won so much. I just stayed off to the side helping my sister to stay more or less upright. After the arcade our little group went around the shopping district stopping at different stores, and just enjoying ourselves… well, most of us.

Our group finally stopped at an outdoor dining area. I set Yuzuki down in one of the chairs and then pulled one up for myself. Tsuna and Kyoko were sitting at a table with Lambo and I-Pin, while the others had all gone off somewhere else; likely to get food or something of the sort. My twin slumped in her seat breathing evenly. I smiled, though it was slightly strained, at my sister. This stop here would allow her to get some much needed rest… unfortunately, a sudden occurrence decided to destroy my prediction.

Multiple explosions sounded from the top of the building we were next to.

"What is that?!" Tsuna shouted rising from his seat in a panic. More explosions followed his shout.

Suddenly, Kyoko pointed up into the air, "Tsuna-kun, look at that!"

Tsuna followed her finger only to have something crash into him. The collision created a small cloud of dust, which cleared just as quickly as it had come. A stranger with dark blond hair and blue eyes was sitting on top of Tsuna hand on the back of his head. However, that wasn't what really caught my attention. What did was the flickering blue flame on his forehead. Yuzuki had mentioned that when Tsuna was shot with a Dying Will Bullet an orange flame appeared on his forehead. I'd seen it briefly in the couple times we'd hung out recently. Despite the difference in color the flame this boy sported had to be a Dying Will Flame.

"My apologies," the boy said turning to look at Tsuna when he paused, "Thou…"

' _What's with that olden language use?_ ' I pondered. No one used 'thou' in today's society.

"Jyuudaime!" Gokudera's concerned voice called my attention towards him. The others that had been with him were there too.

"Tsuna-san!" Haru cried leaning forward a bit in concern.

"Are you all right, Tsuna?!" Yamamoto echoed the other two's sentiments with his own question. Tsuna was slowly picking himself up off the ground.

"Tsuna-kun, are you all right?" Kyoko asked from where she sat at his side. Reborn suddenly appeared, and I was puzzled to see a concerned look on his face. Something about this boy's presence put Reborn on edge; though from the hitman's actions it wasn't because the boy was a threat. I glanced over at my sister whose expression had shifted from peaceful to annoyed. I sent out a silent prayer that nothing else would happen… but of course something did happen.

"VOIIII! What's this?! A bunch of outsiders are starting to make a crowd," an obnoxiously loud voice had my head whipping around to find the source, "Any piece of trash that gets in my way will be cut!"

The man who'd spoken stood on top of the awning that the boy with the blue flame had been thrown off. He was looking down on us predatorily; I was immediately on guard. The black clothing he wore made him seem all the more dangerous, and somehow his long white hair didn't take away from that image at all. He carried a sword, though it was a bit unorthodox in the way he held it… which is to say he didn't hold it at all. The blade was actually strapped to the back of his left hand, but the confidence he displayed told me not to think that it was some sort of mistake; no the blade being strapped to his hand was intentional, and I wasn't about to test my luck against him.

I glanced over at the others, and was relieved to see that Yamamoto and Gokudera were just as wary of this guy as I was.

"What's going on?" Tsuna asked. Though the only reply he got was a cryptic 'I feel a storm brewing' from Reborn. Though I don't know if anyone but me heard him.

"Get back!" the white haired man said raising his blade and then bringing it down in a slashing motion. A blade of air was actually created, and it was powerful enough to break the table that Tsuna had been sitting at earlier. And it didn't stop there, which brought me to the conclusion that this guy was beyond normal. I raised my arm and squinted through the dust. I saw Yuzuki's arm twitch out of the corner of my eye, and clenched my teeth. If this kept up… well, nothing good would come of it. But right now I couldn't worry about my sister. The girls, kids and civilians needed to be evacuated. Thankfully, it seemed that Reborn had it covered from what I could hear over the sound of explosions and gusting wind.

Gokudera's voice was the first clear one I heard, "Hey! Where are you taking the Tenth?!"

"Tsuna!" Yamamoto called out after him. Apparently the blond boy was dragging our friend off somewhere with him.

"What's going on?!" Tsuna's cry carried back to us as he continued to be pulled along by the stranger.

"To a safe place! There I have something to tell thee!" the stranger said. However, the two didn't get much farther as some sort of energy shot blasted the ground in front of them. Not a second later and the man who'd attacked this placed landed behind them.

"VOIIII! Let's quite playing chase," the man said. I was immediately out of my seat. I didn't know what I planned on doing all I knew was that I wouldn't let this guy hurt my friend.

"So who is that?!" the guy questioned the blond that had been dragging Tsuna away, "Now tell me!"

The man lifted his blade, and brought it down. Tsuna froze and the stranger stepped in blocking the blow. However, he was thrown back into a window; the glass shattered as he hit. It was only now that I could see he was covered in scrapes, and looked downright exhausted. Tsuna called out in concern for the stranger, but before he could do anything the attacker spoke once more.

"Hey! That's right, you! What's your relationship to that brat?" the man asked my friend," Spill it or I'll cut you!" he pointed the blade at the brunette. Tsuna shrieked and raised his hands up before him.

"That's… um!" before he could explain the white haired man looked back. Gokudera had thrown quite a few sticks of dynamite up into the air. The man dodged with an ease that spoke of years of training. His trajectory took him to one of the upper windows where he pushed off avoiding more of Gokudera's explosions.

"What's that?" the man asked. Clearly he hadn't realized that we were still here… or maybe he didn't feel threatened by us. With his skill and reflexes the latter seemed most likely.

"Take a look at what happens when you raise a hand against him," Gokudera called out to the man, more dynamite clutched in his hand, "You won't be walking away!"

"Well, it's something like that," Yamamoto said, "We'll take you on!" He had a katana slung over his shoulder. I stood next to them with raised fists.

"As the cliché goes: you mess with one of us you mess with all of us," I said. I wasn't going to delude myself. This guy wasn't normal, and we probably didn't stand a chance against him at all. Still even with the odds against us I wouldn't allow him to hurt Tsuna or any of the others I considered friends.

"Gokudera-kun, Yamamoto and even Arashi!" Tsuna's voice was filled with gratitude, and maybe a bit of awe.

"I didn't bring it with me, but my bat was sitting over there," the baseball star said breaking the serious mood apart. I'd wondered where the sword came from… that must be the bat that Yuzuki had told me about, though she'd never really seen it herself. The guy landed easily, facing the three of us that had basically challenged him.

"You guys involved with him?! I don't really understand, but I'll tell you one thing for certain!" the guy said, "Defy me, and you'll die!"

I felt a shiver run up my spine. This guy was serious. My two companions didn't seem all that concerned though. In fact Gokudera spoke up once again.

"I'll repeat that phrase right back to you!" the silverette said.

"That's a sword, right?" Yamamoto suddenly asked, "I'll start!" the baseball star stepped forward.

The other stranger with the blue flame suddenly shouted, "Please do not! That is not a person you can handle!" that made my two allies pause, "He is simply that dangerous."

"It's too late for regrets!" the man we'd challenged said before surging towards us. Yamamoto met him head on. Metal clashed on metal as the blades met. With a yell Yamamoto flung the man up, though his opponent didn't seem all that concerned. If I had to hazard a guess that was probably because it had been intentional; he'd allowed Yamamoto to throw him.

"The way you swing…" the man called down to my dark haired friend, "You haven't learned a style!"

"What of it?!" Yamamoto shot back. With no hesitation the white haired man flipped himself around and used gravity to his advantage. He was heading straight for Yamamoto as he dropped.

"In that case, this'll be a breeze!" the man shouted as he drew closer to his target. The two blades met again, but flashes of light that were abnormal sprung from the stranger's sword. Small projectiles whizzed past my friend's face and hit the ground. The moment they made contact with the solid surface they exploded. My eyes were wide with horror as smoke surrounded Yamamoto. Everything seemed to dim a little as the dust cleared and Yamamoto fell over. Gokudera growled out something, and lit his own explosives. Before he could do anything though the man struck, slashing the tops off of each one before slamming his foot down on Gokudera's shoulder.

I swallowed thickly as the man turned to me. I clenched my teeth, and eyed him warily. I knew that there was really no chance of me beating him, but I couldn't just sit back and do nothing when Yamamoto and Gokudera had done what they could. I barely managed to dodge the blade as my opponent swung at me.

"So, you're not completely worthless after all," the man said as he came at me again. I tried to stay out of his reach, but he was too fast so I switched tactics and tried to get in closer. I ducked under a swing of his blade, but he must have been expecting that because his foot connected with my face. My head whipped to the side and my body followed quickly. I landed next to Yamamoto my head connecting with his back. My face hurt… in fact my entire head hurt.

"That wasn't bad for trash," I heard the man say, "But still not worth talking about later on," that was the last thing I heard before blacking out.

~Yuzuki's POV~

Everything was dim, and distant but I was still aware of it. Explosions, and shouting. Something was happening, and it was really interfering with my sleep. That in and of itself annoyed me to no end. I did my best to ignore it, but all my efforts were wasted when I felt a sharp pain in my jaw and the back of my skull.

My eyes flew open, and I slowly stood. I took in the sight before me. A man with long white hair stood in front of Tsuna; his entire being screamed dangerous, but with the haze of sleep hanging over me I completely ignored that fact. There was also a good amount of anger that was overriding the fear that was trying to get my attention; this was only increased when I saw Yamamoto, Gokudera and Arashi lying on the ground. It wasn't hard to tell that this man was the cause of what had happened here.

"This is really such a pain," I grumbled darkly as I stepped forward, "Here I was trying to sleep, and some loud-mouthed guy with a sword has to go and wake me up. Normally, I'd just give one a warning for disturbing my rest but I had a rough night and I'm not feeling that generous."

"VOIII! Who the h*** are you?!" the man I was directing my wrath at yelled. I could feel my annoyance and anger rising even more.

"Just a person who likes some peace and quiet when trying to rest. Oh, and the friend of those guys you just took down… leastways I'm assuming it was you," I said my voice taking on a strangely sweet tone, "One of which just so happens to be my brother, so any chance of mercy you had is now completely gone."

"Yuzuki, you can't fight this guy," Tsuna said, "He's way too strong!"

"Do I look like I care how strong this guy is? He did some unforgivable things. Hurting my friends, and attacking my brother," I said darkly, "But worst is he disturbed my rest. So, now… someone's gotta die~"

I didn't waste any more time with words, instead I sprinted at the stranger. He didn't seem all that worried about anything I'd said, and in the back of my mind I knew that meant that this wasn't going to end well for me. But as tired and upset as I was the warnings ringing through my head were completely ignored. I sidestepped a slash from his blade, and spun trying to get behind him. He launched a kick at me in retaliation which I blocked, though it sent jolts of pain down my arm; nothing was broken but I'd have quite the nasty bruise later. My opponent seemed rather surprised… though the look disappeared quickly as his fist shot towards my face. I raised my other arm up and blocked that attack as well.

However, in doing so I left myself severely open. The air rushed out of my lungs as the man's knee connected with my gut. I fell forward trying to catch my breath. There was a sharp pain to the back of my neck, and the world went dark.

* * *

 **Me: Well, there's Chapter Twenty-Five. There are a couple things I'd like to address. The first of them is the reference I threw into the last chapter. I took a quote from Leo of the Fire Emblem Fates series, which I had Arashi use; the quote was 'You must have the devil's own luck'. Also anyone have any guess to who those two mysterious figures were watching? Now some of you are probably wondering why our mysterious stranger with white hair complimented Arashi.**

 **Arashi: May I explain this?**

 **Me: Of course, you were the one complimented after all… well to a degree.**

 **Arashi: True enough. Well, I was complimented by our foe because I have some actual training. Yamamoto has no idea how to properly wield a blade and Gokudera, while having grown up in the Mafia world, didn't have a lot of actual training. Most of what Gokudera knows was self-taught for the most part. I on the other had have been trained in martial arts since I was young by my father, so I had some skill just not at our foe's level.**

 **Me: Yep, and before I touch on the matter with Yuzuki's behavior in this chapter I want to explain why I'm not saying the names of the two canon characters that showed up in this chapter. The reason for that is because while I'm sure most people reading this FanFiction have seen the anime or maybe read the manga, there might be a few readers who haven't so I won't reveal their names until next chapter.**

 **Yuzuki: Smart idea. Anyways I can explain my strange actions from this chapter. When I get overly tired I have a much bigger temper than usual and a very short fuse. People that mess with me when I'm trying to sleep should do so with great caution, since any fear I might have of them normally is completely ignored. That's why I attacked the guy even though my mind was trying to tell me to run away as fast as I could.**

 **Me: Not that you would have anyway since your friends were there.**

 **Yuzuki: True. Also if people do something after waking me up, like hurting my friends and family, that just makes things so much worse for them. But that's why I acted the way I did. And you all can go blame it on Mukuro since he's why I was tired in the first place.**

 **Me: That being said… hmm… I'll take care of the disclaimer today. I don't own KHR or the characters within said series. I do own any and all OCs that are a part of this FanFiction along with the plot when it concerns them.**

 **Ben: With that we hope you all enjoyed this chapter.**

 **Jenna: So, please leave a review in the box below to let the authoress know what you thought.**

 **Me: Aren't you guys supposed to-**

 **Yuzuki: No spoilers please. That being said we'll see you all next time, so until then sayonara minna.**


	28. Interesting Development and Rings Given

**Me: Alright so before we start this chapter's gonna be a bit different at the beginning. That being said let's jump right into this.**

* * *

An Interesting Development and the Guardians are Chosen

~At the Shopping Center; ?'s POV~

I looked down at the scene below my companion and me. I glanced over to find her eyes locked on our superior who was staring down two boys. One he'd been fighting the other night, the other was a brunette. The latter had been handed something by the blond; a box… a very familiar box.

"Do you think those are…" my companion trailed off. I nodded as our superior's demeanor changed.

"Seems likely, since the overloud captain looks interested now," I said. My companion nodded. It was too bad that those kids had been involved. Only a few had been raised in the world that my companion and I inhabited. Truthfully, I hadn't really believed that the brunette below us could be the one our boss was worried about… well, maybe worried wasn't the right word; 'annoyed with' would probably be a better way of putting it. But with things going as they had it was clear that my doubts had no standing any longer.

"Hmm… think we'll be heading home after this bit?" my companion asked. I shrugged.

"Depends on if we have to reveal ourselves or not. I'm actually tempted to do so, even if our superior down there doesn't need our help," I muttered. My companion giggled a bit. She knew I wasn't happy being here, but orders were orders.

"Looks like you might get your wish," the girl beside me said pointing behind the captain. I followed her arm, and found a blond man standing there conversing with the captain… well, as much as he could in a situation like this.

' _Why's he here? Is he siding with that kid?_ ' with those questions in mind my companion and I stood, and leapt down. We landed just in time to hear the Cavallone Boss's words.

"If you insist on continuing your tasteless little game, I'll take you on," the blond said. His eyes were narrowed in a threatening manner.

"How scary," I said walking forward gaining everyone's attention. My companion giggled by my side.

"VOIIII! You brats were supposed to stay out of sight unless the situation demanded otherwise!" our superior yelled at us.

"Does this situation not call for it, then?" I asked mockingly, "My apologies then Squalo-taichou."

Squalo glowered at me. I just stared back at him completely at ease; I'd learned the hard way that showing any sort of negative emotion set the white haired man off. Thankfully, there were other matters to take care of right now. I turned my attention towards the brunette who was staring at my companion and I with wide eyes.

' _So, he does recognize us. Heh, how amusing,_ ' I glanced at the unconscious teens that were off to the side. They'd been stupid to take on Squalo, brave and admirable, but _very_ stupid. Then my gaze came to rest on the Boss of the Cavallone Family, Dino. He was watching me and my companion warily. The two of us had briefly met him once when our little group had been asked to attend a gathering of the Families that had ties to the Vongola. He seemed to have an idea of who we were if the looks he was sending us were anything to go by. My companion nudged me, and I nodded. Squalo was planning something; it wouldn't do to get in trouble by attacking one of the Vongola's strongest and most loyal allies… at least right now, so it was obvious that our supervisor was going to try and get out of here without causing any more trouble.

"It'd be fun to take you on here and now, Bucking Bronco! But the brass won't like it if I take on the Family Alliance," Squalo said, there was a slight bit of disappointment in his voice (though you'd only notice it if you'd known him for a while), "So I'll go home quietly," I silently snickered with my companion, "There's no way I'd do that!"

Our superior reached out grabbed the brunette by the hair. Said boy let out a cry of pain as he was hoisted into the air. I winced in sympathy; I knew from experience how much that hurt.

"Let go of Tsuna!" Dino shouted. The blond boss lashed his whip towards Squalo. With no hesitation the captain launched the bombs hidden in his blade at Dino. The two attacks clashed and the bombs exploded. Under the cover of the smoke my companion and I followed the captain as he leaped to the high ground after snatching up the box the brunette had been holding.

"Soft as always, Bucking Bronco! For your sake, I'll leave their lives in your hands," Squalo called down to Dino who was looking over the two boys with concern, "But I'll take these with me!" he flashed the symbol on the box to those below. The boss of the Cavallone family gasped then gritted his teeth.

"The Vongola Rings!" the other blond shouted gripping his right arm.

' _So, they are the rings,_ ' I thought a small smirk making its way onto my face. This would really make the boss happy. Squalo smiled ferally down to the group looking up at us before flipping backwards.

"See ya!" the captain shouted as he fell out of the view of Dino and the others. My companion flashed a peace sign before following the white haired man.

"You're help in acquiring these is much appreciated! Arrivederci," I called out to those below as I leapt after Squalo and my companion. Since we'd jumped in to help the captain we wouldn't be able to stay here, so we followed Squalo as he made his way to our transportation home. Going home would be worth it, even with the inevitable lectures and brushes with death that were sure to await us. Sure my companion and I might not have been born Italian but Italy was indeed home.

~Back with Tsuna and the others; Arashi's POV~

My consciousness returned gradually. I could dimly hear voices nearby but what was being said was a mystery to me. I finally opened my eyes to find myself in a sort of kneeling position held up with the help of Dino's men; the blond himself was holding the stranger that had led the long haired man to our group. I glanced to the side and found that my sister was out cold still; I figured that was mostly due to how tired she was but with was clear that she'd also fought the same guy Gokudera, Yamamoto and I had been defeated by.

Tsuna ran up to us worry etched into his face, "Gokudera-kun! Yamamoto! Arashi! Yuzuki!"

"Jyuudaime, you're safe!" Gokudera was clearly relieved. So was I to be honest, though he looked a little worse for wear not that the rest of us were any different.

"Are you guys alright? What about Yuzuki?" Tsuna asked.

I answered first, "Yuzuki's fine Tsuna. She's mostly just catching up on some sleep."

Tsuna let out a sigh of relief. Then Gokudera spoke up.

"I'm sorry," the silverette said, "I'll defeat him the next time I see him!"

"Maybe he's still in the area," Yamamoto added his own thoughts. I was about to speak up, and remind them what had just happened to us when Reborn beat me to it.

"You can go home," the hitman said. Gokudera and Yamamoto started and looked at the infant. They couldn't seem to comprehend what Reborn was saying.

"Reborn-san!" Gokudera began, but Reborn kept him from making an argument.

"You must have realized it from the last fight," the infant hitman said, "At your current combat strength, you'll just be in the way."

It might have sounded harsh, but one couldn't deny that it was very true. I had realized it the moment that man had first made his appearance. He wasn't normal… in any aspect of the word. He was strong, and knew what he was doing. Me and the others were just middle schoolers with little to no training. Even if Reborn sounded like he was berating us he was making sure we understood the gravity of the situation. I couldn't deny that losing to that stranger had left a bad taste in my mouth, but I knew trying to find him and settle the score now would only result in the same outcome.

 _'Reborn is trying to protect us in his own way, and he's not wrong. Besides I have a feeling that we haven't seen the last of that guy,'_ I thought glancing at my friends. _'Hopefully we'll be stronger before he returns.'_

~Later at the Hisoka Household; Arashi's POV~

I watched my sister's even breathing as she slept on. It had taken me a while to get home since I had to support my sister's weight. Thankfully we hadn't been too far from home, and our parents had gone to pick up Haruto before we'd gotten back; which had saved me from having to answer any awkward questions. Of course that wasn't enough to make me feel all that much better. My friends and I had been soundly beaten by some stranger, my sister was unconscious, another stranger had protected Tsuna and was injured, and to top everything off it seemed very likely that the stranger with white hair would be coming back.

"Just how did we get into this mess nee-san?" I murmured, "Seems like we just keep getting deeper and deeper into the trouble surrounding Tsuna and the others. I worried that the stranger that beat us will be back, and none of us will be prepared at all. What should we do?"

"Well, for one take a deep breath and relax," I glanced over to see Yuzuki looking at me. Her eyes were clearer than they'd been earlier today, but her posture still screamed that she was tired.

"Shouldn't you be resting?" I asked. My twin shrugged.

"Probably, but I think we need to discuss what happened today before anything else," Yuzuki said, "You're right about that guy being too strong for us now, but if we train up some we might be able to at least keep up with him should he come back. Thankfully, I think we have some time until he shows back up; if he decides to come back at all."

I didn't share my sister's optimism, "As nice as it would be for that guy to stay away from Namimori I don't think that's gonna happen nee-san. I just have this strong feeling that we haven't seen the last of him, and that time isn't really on our side."

Yuzuki fell into thought, "Again you're probably right. That being the case we should ask Dad to start training us again."

"Do you really think he'll be willing?" I asked. My twin nodded with a light of certainty in her eyes.

"Do you really think that Dad would pass up an opportunity to train us again? I mean don't you remember how disappointed he was when you got sick and couldn't train anymore?" my sister asked, "Or how he acted when I decided to put my own training on hold until you got better?"

"Well, I can't argue with you there," I admitted getting a tired smile out of Yuzuki, "Now that we've got everything settled why don't you get some more rest. Tomorrow we'll ask Dad to restart our training."

"Right," my sister yawned lying back down. Her eyes slid closed and I sent a smile at her. She always had known just what it took to calm my nerves. I felt my own mouth stretch into a yawn, and I decided to follow my twin's example. I pulled the covers of my bed back before wriggling underneath them. I spared one last glance at Yuzuki before my eyes closed allowing me to drift into unconsciousness.

~The Next Day, Yuzuki's POV~

When we woke the next morning Arashi and I decided to pay a visit to the hospital since that was likely where Gokudera and Yamamoto would be. While Arashi had told me that the two hadn't been injured too badly, the blond stranger my twin had talked about was another matter. It seemed likely that all of us would want answers and that guy was the one who probably had the information we needed, and if not Dino might be there. With those things seeming very possible Arashi and I left the house and began making our way to the medical facility.

However, we didn't get far before our mother's voice called out to us, "Arashi, Yuzuki wait a moment please."

My brother and I turned in unison as our mother walked up to us. She had two envelopes in her hands. She handed one to me, and one to Arashi. Our names were written on the front of each envelope.

"Where'd these come from Kaa-san?" Arashi asked.

"They were I the mail the other day. There's no return address and I don't know who sent them to you two. I was going to give them to you both yesterday but you were asleep," our mother said a small smile gracing her face, "I'm glad I caught you two before you left."

"Arigatou Kaa-san," I said. Our mother nodded slightly before heading back inside our house. Once she was inside I shared a look with my twin.

"Who do you think sent these letters to us?" Arashi asked me.

I shrugged before replying, "I don't know, but the timing seems awfully suspicious. And I don't think these are letters; the envelopes feel too heavy for that."

Once again my brother and I shared a look. I took a deep breath and opened my envelope as Arashi mirrored my actions. Inside the envelope was a small item made of metal. I reached in and pulled it out revealing and interesting looking ring. A glance in my twin's direction revealed that he'd received a similar item. I looked back down at the ring in my hand. The face of the object looked a bit like a shield of sorts though half of it appeared to be missing. On the half that still remained was what appeared to be a tree whose canopy was being blown about by what seemed to be a strong wind; at least that's what the emblem seemed to be conveying.

Arashi's ring on the other hand seemed to have an emblem that appeared to be portraying a light breeze with how the etched on grass looked. Above the emblems of each of our rings was a clam and a half; I figured that there was probably another on the missing half of the rings.

"Do you have any idea what these are?" Arashi's question pulled my attention to him.

"Other than the fact that they're rings with missing parts no. Maybe that stranger you told me about knows something about them, and if not then Dino might still be here somewhere," I said.

My twin nodded, "Then that's all the more reason to get to the hospital."

I made a noise of agreement and slipped the ring on my finger. Surprisingly it fit perfectly as though I was meant to wear it. However, I pushed the thought out of my mind for the time being. Only after Arashi and I got our answers could I worry about why this ring seemed like it had been made for me.

~At the Hospital; Yuzuki's POV~

Arashi and I had arrived at the hospital to find Yamamoto and Gokudera already there.

"Tch, what are you two doing here?" Gokudera asked turning to look in our direction from where he sat.

"Well, we wanted to see how that stranger was holding up," I replied rolling my eyes as I did, "Plus we have a few questions for Dino-san as well if he's still here."

As I spoke Arashi and I walked up to our two friends. Before anything more could be said the door was opened again.

"Dino-san?" Tsuna's questioning voice came from the entryway, "Are you here?"

The four of us already present turned to look at the door.

"Yo, Tsuna!" Yamamoto called out to the brunette a smile on his face. Gokudera quickly stood and greeted Tsuna as well.

"Hey," I said, while Arashi simply raised his hand. It didn't take long for Tsuna to come into the room, and up to us.

"Gokudera-kun! Yamamoto! Even you two! Why are you all here?" our friend asked.

It was Gokudera that answered. Apparently Dino had gotten in touch with the silverette and Yamamoto. I shared a glance with my brother and wasn't surprised to find that he was thinking the same thing as me.

 _'Why didn't Dino contact us?'_ the thought was echoing through both our minds. However, we were still here so it's not like he needed to, but still it was kind of weird that we hadn't been told anything. Tsuna's voice suddenly broke through my thoughts.

"I'm sorry about yesterday," he said, "You saved me, but…"

"Well, Arashi and the others did that; I just wanted to hurt someone," I muttered. Thankfully, only Arashi heard me.

Gokudera looked embarrassed as he spoke, "Well…"

Yamamoto appeared upset, and refused to look at Tsuna until a different emotion flashed across his face, "Something weird happened this morning!" he reached into his pocket as he spoke.

"That's right!" Gokudera echoed, seeming pleased with the topic change. I shared another glance with my brother as Yamamoto spoke up again.

"I went to get the paper this morning and this was in my mailbox," the baseball star said holding up an odd looking ring. It looked like the rings my brother and I had received as well.

"My place too," Gokudera said, "I thought it might have something to do with that guy from yesterday."

"Our mother found these addressed to us as well," my brother said flashing his ring to Tsuna, and I followed suit. Needless to say something about the rings seemed to freak Tsuna out.

"Those rings can't be…" our brunette friend cried out.

"Do you know what this is, Tsuna?" Yamamoto asked.

"It's dangerous!" Tsuna shouted making me look down at my ring; it didn't look dangerous to me, but Tsuna's next words had me changing my opinion, "They'll come after us if we have them!"

I was sure those Tsuna was referring to was that white haired guy and any friends of his he decided to bring with him. If that were the case then my brother had been right to be worried.

"So you have one too!" Gokudera seemed excited by the fact that Tsuna had a ring as well.

"But why did they go to you four?" our brunette friend asked a scared and worried tone dancing in his voice.

"Because they were also chosen," a familiar voice said. I turned to see Dino standing there with Reborn right next to him.

"Dino-san! And Reborn!" Tsuna shouted. I dipped my head slightly in acknowledgement to Dino, and he sent me a smile.

"There are nine Vongola Rings," the hitman said, "They only have meaning when nine Family members hold them."

"Nine Family members?" Tsuna questioned.

 _'Does that mean Arashi and I are supposed to be two of these nine? Are Yamamoto and Gokudera a part of this too?'_ I asked myself mentally. If that were true I was certain that it didn't bode well for any of us.

~Arashi's POV~

With my sister lost in thought I decided it was up to me to continue listening to what Reborn had to say.

"The eight other rings have been delivered to people who are worthy of protecting the next Vongola boss, Sawada Tsunayoshi," the dark haired infant said. That had a great impact on me, and judging by the looks on Yamamoto and Gokudera's faces they were in the same boat. But such a thing was definitely asking for trouble. If we'd been deemed worthy to protect Tsuna, that meant that people would be after my friend's head. As my mind began reeling with this information I had to wonder just how my twin and I had gotten ourselves mixed up in something like this.

* * *

 **Me: *silent***

 **Yuzuki: Well, don't you have something you want to say?**

 **Me: *bows ninety degrees* Gomen'nasai minna! I know I said I'd try to give you all more frequent updates, but I've failed spectacularly and there's no excuse. All I can do is apologize and hope that you forgive me.**

 **Arashi: I think you'll be fine as long as you don't abandon this story.**

 **Me: I hope you're right Arashi. Well, there's not much else for me to say after apologizing so… who's got the disclaimer today?**

 **Basil: If thou wouldn't mind Cloud-dono, I would be most pleased to take care of it.**

 **Me: Oh, are you really okay with saying the disclaimer Basil?**

 **Basil: Of course Cloud-dono.**

 **Me: Well… alright, but you don't have to add the suffix to my name.**

 **Basil: I would not wish to be disrespectful.**

 **Me: I'm giving you permission to drop the suffix, so it's fine.**

 **Basil: If that is what thou wishes… CloudSkylark18 doesn't own the series of Katekyo Hitman Reborn in any form. She does however, own her OCs that have shown up already and those that have yet to make an appearance.**

 **Me: Thank you Basil, you were most helpful. Now, since the disclaimer has been dealt with I want to thank all of you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed Chapter Twenty-Six. Please leave a review in the box below, and feel free to follow and/or favorite this story. Until next time minna, ja ne.**


	29. Discussions

Discussions

~Arashi's POV~

"That ring is proof that you are a successor to Vongola," Reborn said to Tsuna. Needless to say that had everyone listening intently once again. Even Yuzuki had snapped out of her reverie.

"Don't make my choices for me!" Tsuna's voice was filled with complaint, "Besides, why did you drag everyone else into this dangerous situation?!"

It was nice to hear that Tsuna didn't want any of us to be put in danger. However, I was sure that we wouldn't be able to get out of it now. All of us were too deeply involved, even me who'd only just become a part of this crazy outfit. Even if we returned these rings that guy that thought he'd grabbed them would probably still come after us; we were there after all, and might know something.

"I'm so honored and happy," Gokudera's voice broke through my musings, and startled everyone else, "I'm ready for this. Let's do our best, Jyuudaime!"

"Can you really be so surprised by Gokudera's actions Tsuna?" my sister quietly asked the brunette, "He's been like this since day one after all."

Tsuna sighed, "That's true, but…"

Reborn's voice cut Tsuna off from saying more, "Gokudera's ring is the Ring of Storm. Yamamoto's is the Ring of Rain. And the twins have the Wind Rings."

"You're right," Gokudera said, "They're different from mine."

"You sure?" Yamamoto asked. I took a quick look at each of my friends' rings. They were indeed different from each other; my sister's and mine were also different from theirs, but even though Reborn had said the rings my sister and I held were those that represented the wind they looked different from one another as well. And all of our looked vastly different from Tsuna's.

"If we both have the Rings of Wind then why are ours different Reborn-san?" I asked. Reborn smirked and tilted his fedora down over his eyes.

"That's because they each represent a different aspect of the wind," the infant hitman said, "Yours represents the gentle Breeze, while Yuzuki's is the forceful Gale."

"So, I'm the Gale…" my sister murmured. I knew neither one of us had any clue why that was so significant, but we both knew better than to take Reborn's words at face value.

"What's with the 'Storm', 'Rain' and 'Wind' parts?" Tsuna asked for all of us, "This isn't a weather report."

"The first Vongola Family had a variety of unique members. Their traits helped shape the rings. The first boss was said to be like the sky, colorful and engulfing everything, open to all things," Reborn explained, "So his ring was the Ring of Sky. And the other rings were named after various kinds of weather that color the sky. The merciful shower that washes all away, the Ring of Rain. The turbulent gale that fiercely blows, the Ring of Storm."

Yuzuki grumbled a bit. I smiled knowingly; when Reborn said 'gale' she probably thought he was going to talk about her ring. I sent her a look that said 'be patient' getting a slight huff from her, but it did the trick.

Reborn continued, "The drifting cloud that is never trapped by anyone and walks its own path, the Ring of Cloud," I saw my sister shiver for some reason, "The illusion that prohibits knowledge of its true nature, the Ring of Mist," another shiver ran through my twin and I made a mental note to speak with her about it later.

~Yuzuki's POV~

I had no idea why the idea of the Cloud and Mist Rings bothered me so much, but it did. I saw my brother watching me closely, and knew I was in for a good deal of questioning later.

 _'Maybe I feel the way I do because the attributes of those rings make me think of two people I'd rather not deal with,'_ I thought before turning my attention back to Reborn.

"The orb of fire that brightens the great sky, the Ring of Sun. The thunderbolt that strikes a zealous blow, the Ring of Thunder," the young hitman paused for a moment glancing at my brother and me before continuing, "The gusting wind that tears through everything before it, the Ring of Gale Wind. And the soothing breath that calms those it comes in contact with, the Ring of Breeze Wind."

I shared a look with my brother. It was unnerving that the attributes of each ring seemed to fit us perfectly. I glanced down at the ring that fit perfectly on my finger, and had to wonder what its first bearer must have felt when wearing it.

"But with the Rings you have right now-" Reborn tried to continue but was cut off by Tsuna.

"Stop! Stop!" our brunette friend screamed.

"What is it?" the hitman asked.

"Look, I just don't want mine!" Tsuna cried out clutching at the chain from which his ring hung, "Right, guys? Right?"

The ring itself was fine, but what it entailed was not. Sure, I was Tsuna's friend and I'd help him no matter what, but keeping the ring was definitely dangerous. Still I figured I'd wait to see what everyone else decided to do.

"Sorry, I play baseball, so I can't wear rings. I don't really understand all this," Yamamoto said.

"Right! Right! He means it's big trouble to hold onto these!" Tsuna said.

"I don't think that's what he meant at all Tsuna," I muttered, though I knew my brunette friend wasn't wrong.

"That long-haired guy from yesterday is gonna come after us!" and there went any chance Tsuna had of getting the other two to get rid of their rings. Arashi and I shared a look; our fear had been proven true. Ever since yesterday we'd been worried that we hadn't seen the last of that guy, and now for Tsuna to be saying he'd be back… well, that didn't bode well for any of us.

"He's coming?" Yamamoto asked.

"Yeah," Tsuna responded, "Dangerous, isn't it? Within ten days, if things go badly!"

"Ten days, huh?" Yamamoto questioned softly.

"That's not a lot of time nee-san," Arashi said from my side.

"No it's not," I admitted, "That just means we'll have to train harder in the coming days."

~Arashi's POV~

Yuzuki was right. Our only hope in dealing with this guy was to train as long and as hard as we could the next few days.

"What's the matter?" Tsuna asked looking at the four of us curiously.

"This is mine, right?" Yamamoto asked closing his hand around his ring, "I'll hang onto it."

"Huh?" it was clear that our brunette friend was beyond confused.

"I don't think I can stick with being the loser," the baseball star said before running out the door.

"Ya-Yamamoto!" Tsuna called after our dark haired friend.

"In ten days, I'll be reborn as a man who won't put this ring to shame!" Gokudera sent Tsuna a thumbs up as he ran past us following Yamamoto's lead.

"Hey! Gokudera-kun too?! W-why?" Tsuna seemed dumbfounded about how this could have happened.

"Good job, Tsuna," Dino congratulated our friend, "Thanks to your words, Gokudera and Yamamoto are ready and willing to train."

"That's not what I intended! This isn't a joking matter!" Tsuna said grasping at his hair, "Ah, what about Yuzuki and Arashi?"

"Well… we'll be heading out too," my sister said, "Though we were planning on training even before we came here. In fact we only came here to get answers."

I nodded in agreement, "Yeah, and I think we have most of the answers we needed. We don't really want to fight that guy again, but we kind of had a suspicion that he'd be back."

"You thought he'd be back?" Tsuna asked looking between us.

Yuzuki nodded, "Unfortunately, yes. Especially, since you said he'd be coming for these rings."

"Would you rather not keep the rings?" Dino asked.

"Even if we didn't have them we'd probably still be targeted. He saw us there yesterday, so he'd probably think we knew something," I said, "So keeping them is just easier Dino-san. I am sorry we can't give them up Tsuna," I said to my friend.

"Yeah, me too," Yuzuki echoed, "We'll see you later Tsuna."

The two of us lifted our hands in farewell before leaving the hospital. A thousand different thoughts ran through our minds. Who were the other chosen? Why were we picked? But all of those faded into the background as we got closer to home; our thoughts turned to training with our father at this point.

~Yuzuki's POV~

"Kaa-san, Otou-san we're home," I called as Arashi and I stepped into the house and slipped off our shoes.

"Welcome, home you two," our mother's drifted out of the kitchen to us, "We're just getting ready to have lunch so your timing is wonderful."

I followed my twin as he headed into the kitchen. Our mother was busy putting more rice into the cooker. As I glanced at what was already there I noticed that there was more food than usual.

"Kaa-san why's there more food today?" Arashi asked.

Our mother turned to us and smiled as she replied, "Chisaki called, she's coming home for a visit today."

 _'So that's what's going on,'_ I mentally said before sending a question to my mother, "Do you need any help?"

"If you could set the table and locate Haruto and your father, I'd appreciate it," our mother said.

"If you take care of the table I'll get dad and Haruto," Arashi said. I made a small sound of acknowledgement before I gathered the utensils and began setting the table. I was just finishing when the front door opened, and my sister's voice called in.

"Hey, anybody here?" Chisaki's head peeked into the kitchen as she spoke.

"Aniki!" I shouted running up to her, and wrapping my arms around her waist. I heard Chisaki chuckle as she wrapped her arms around me.

"So, squirt where's the other troublemakers?" my sister asked.

"Aniki it's not nice to call others troublemakers," Arashi said coming in, Haruto's arms wrapped around his neck as my twin carried our younger brother in on his back. Our father wasn't too far behind. Chisaki giggled, but said nothing more on the subject. Before I could ask my sister anything the phone rang.

"I'll get it," I said. I left the kitchen, and the others began asking Chisaki how her classes had been going. I ignored their voices as I picked up the phone.

 ** _"Hey is this Yuzuki?"_** Hiromi's voice crackled through the phone.

"Yeah, this is Yuzuki. What do you need Hiromi-chan?" I asked. My friend's voice sounded both excited and upset.

 ** _"Did you hear?"_** the girl asked.

"Hear what? Am I missing something?" I asked my friend.

Hiromi sighed, as though she couldn't believe I didn't know what she did, **_"Well, apparently Ben and Jenna went home. Did I ever tell you that they transferred from Italy? If I didn't you know now. Anyways they apparently went back to Italy; a relative of theirs came and picked them up yesterday."_**

I wasn't sure what to think of this information. I wasn't very close to the twins, even though we could technically be counted as friends. Still despite my distance from the two I was curious about why they'd left so suddenly. Could it have had something to do with that long-haired guy from yesterday and the chaos he'd caused?

"Do you know why they left?" I asked.

 ** _'Hmm… I think it had something to do with that incident at the Shopping District, but I'm not sure,"_** Hiromi said. I let out a low hum. My friend continued talking, but I couldn't focus on anything she was saying; the information about the Black twins leaving had my mind reeling and kept me from concentrating.

~In the Kitchen; Arashi's POV~

As my sister's conversation on the phone continued I could tell that something was bothering her. That of course meant I had something else to talk with her about. However, that could wait until after I spoke with our father.

"Ne, Tou-san?" I spoke up slowly. My father turned away from Chisaki, and I internally winced. I knew that I would be asking for a lot. Chisaki would only be staying for a short time, and I was sure that our father would want to spend time with her. However, if Yuzuki and I weren't trained now we'd be in big trouble later when that man with the long hair returned; even more so if he brought reinforcements with him. Still feeling the questioning gaze of my father on me I forced myself to continue on. I beckoned him to follow me out of the kitchen, and into the next room before I spoke again.

"This may be a lot to ask, especially right now, but Yuzuki and I have a favor to ask of you," I said, my father gestured for me to continue, "We were wondering if you'd be willing to start training us again?"

My father smiled widely, "I'd like nothing more. We can get started as soon as your sister heads back to college."

"Well… we were hoping that we could start immediately," I said and my father's smile dropped a little, "We really don't want to spoil Chisaki's stay, but it's necessary that we start right away."

"Why's that?" my father asked. I glanced out to where Yuzuki was still on the phone, and mentally sighed; I'd get no help from my sister. She'd always been better at convincing our father to do things, and she probably already had an excuse as to why we needed to start right away. Regardless I couldn't back down now.

"It's complicated…" I trailed off momentarily my thoughts taking over, _'I don't want you to get hurt Tou-san. I can't tell you the truth. I would if it were possible… but it just isn't. I hope you'll be able to understand.'_

"Arashi?" I snapped back to reality at my father's curious voice.

"I can't really explain it. I'd like to, I really would, but I just can't. Just know that it's very important," I said, "We need to learn more and get stronger, but we don't have time to waste. We only have ten days in order to build ourselves up, and even then it might not be enough. I just… want to be able to protect Yuzuki and the friends I've made."

For a while everything was silent in the room. I could hear Chisaki and my mother talking in the kitchen still with Haruto butting in every once in a while. Yuzuki mumbled a few words into the phone before I heard the click of the receiver as she hung up.

"Is it really that important to you?" I met my father's eye.

"Yes, it is," I answered, "Not just to me, but also Yuzuki. We both really need this; we want to protect our friends and each other."

My father let out a hum before smiling again, "I can't possibly turn you and your sister down after hearing all that. Still, I'd like a couple days to spend with Chisaki. So I'll start your training tomorrow afternoon. Sound fair?"

I nodded. My father smiled again, though I thought I caught a sad look in his eyes. He turned away and headed back towards the kitchen, but paused at the room's entrance.

"I had a feeling this day would come. Just remember what you're going to use the skills I teach you for," my father's voice was quiet so I barely managed to catch what he said. I pondered his words for a moment, but I couldn't understand the meaning of them. I figured at some point everything would make sense but now was not that time. With that thought in mind I followed my father back into the kitchen after sending my twin a look that said I'd tell her everything later.

~That Night; Yuzuki's POV~

We'd had a good time at dinner and I had enjoyed talking with Chisaki, but I'd wished for things to hurry along so I could talk to Arashi. Finally things had slowed and Haruto had been escorted to bed though it seemed likely that school would still be cancelled due to the disturbance in the Shopping District the other day.

 _'I'm so glad school was cancelled today. If it hadn't been Hibari would have been so mad,'_ I shuddered as the thought crossed my mind as I got ready for bed. I let out a yawn, and glared at myself in the bathroom mirror. No way was I falling asleep until I talked with my twin. I knocked on the door to our room, and Arashi's muffled voice drifted out.

"I'm almost done nee-san," he said. Not long after I heard footsteps, and the door was quickly unlocked and opened. I stepped inside and shut the door behind me. I met the gaze of my brother after we both sat down on the edges of our beds facing one another.

"So, I know you have questions for me," I said, "You can go first."

"If you're sure," my twin's voice hesitated briefly before he pushed on, "When Reborn mentioned the Cloud and Mist Guardians earlier you looked upset. Do you know who they are?"

I shook my head, "No, but I have a good idea of who they could be and that just sets me on edge," I could tell that Arashi wanted me to elaborate so after taking a breath I did, "Well, the description of the Cloud Guardian reminded me of Hibari… and that kinda scares me; he already has it out for me after all," my brother winced in sympathy.

"I can see why that would put you off," Arashi said, "So what about the Mist? Who do you think that could be?"

"Well, remember that Mukuro guy I mentioned before?" I asked shuddering slightly.

My twin nodded, "Yeah… you think he's supposed to be Tsuna's Mist Guardian? But he's in that super secure Mafia prison place, right?"

"Yeah, but he broke out of there before," I reminded my brother, "He could probably do it again if he really tried."

"I guess that's a possibility, but security's bound to be tighter after his first break," my brother reasoned, "And even if he does get out, who'd be stupid enough to give him one of the rings?"

I shrugged, "Don't know, but it really wouldn't surprise me too much. Still this is just speculation; there could be others out there who fit those descriptions just as well. So then, anything else?"

Arashi nodded, "Yeah, just one more thing. When you were talking on the phone something perturbed you didn't it?"

"I suppose so," I admitted, "Hiromi called and told me that Ben and Jenna went back home to Italy, which is apparently where they transferred from in case no one told you. That wasn't the part that really messed with me," my twin's look urged me on, "The timing of it was what bothered me. It happened after the attack on the Shopping District the other day. They were pulled out of school by a relative."

"Relative… not parent? And right after the attack," my brother mumbled, "You don't think they had something to do with it, do you?"

"I'm not really sure," I said, "It wouldn't be too surprising that they'd get pulled out of school after all the dangerous stuff that goes on here, but I do have to wonder why not sooner. And I suppose something could have happened to their parents, and their being raised by some other family member. Regardless… something just doesn't sit right with me about this."

"I won't argue the point," my brother said, "Maybe, we'll see them again," I nodded in agreement, "Now I'll tell you what Dad said. He'll start training us tomorrow afternoon; he wants to spend some time with Chisaki."

"Well, that's less time… but it's still better than nothing," I said, but something in my brother's gaze had me pausing, "Is there something else?"

Arashi nodded, "Yeah, after Dad agreed to train us again he said something kind of weird."

"Weird? Weird how?" I asked.

"Well, this is what he said, and I quote: 'I had a feeling this day would come. Just remember what you're going to use the skills I teach you for.' I don't know what he meant, and maybe we're not supposed to know now," my brother voice sounded a little frustrated, but more confused than anything, "I do wish I understood what he was trying to say."

I reached over and placed a hand on my brother's shoulder. When he met my gaze I offered him a look of support. He sent me back a grateful smile.

"Don't worry about what Dad said. We'll figure it out together eventually," I reassured my twin, "For now, we'll focus on the training. Then, whatever happens after happens. Sound like a plan to you?"

Arashi smiled, "Well, it's better than nothing nee-san."

I playfully shoved him, a grin on my face. My twin returned my smile with a smaller one of his own. I could read his gratefulness in his expression. Suddenly a yawn cut through my brother's look triggering one of my own. After a moment the two of us burst out laughing, quietly of course, before bidding each other good night.

* * *

 **Me: Alright, and there's the end of Chapter Twenty-Seven. Sorry it took longer than I thought to get this finished and out. My inspiration was running a little low I guess… well, that and my work ethic I guess.**

 **Yuzuki: Well, at least you finished it. You're committed at least.**

 **Me: Committed huh? In that case I'll try to step up to the plate more often.**

 **Arashi: That being said don't overwork yourself okay?**

 **Me: I won't don't worry. Alright so saying today's disclaimer will be… Hiromi! After all it's been a while since she's made an appearance.**

 **Hiromi: I'm honored. So, then CloudSkylark18 doesn't own KHR.**

 **Me: Which sucks, cause it's so good and it would've been cool for my OCs to be a part of the story.**

 **Hiromi: Can I continue?**

 **Me: Oh, yeah sorry.**

 **Hiromi: CloudSkylark18 does however, own all her OCs of which I'm among.**

 **Me: Yep, and thanks so much for the help Hiromi.**

 **Hiromi: It was my pleasure Cloud.**

 **Me: With all that taken care of please leave a review in the box below, and feel free to PM me if you have any questions. There is a poll up on my profile for this story, but it will change nothing of the plot if you take part in it. Well then, until next time minna!**


	30. The Training Begins

The Training Begins

~Yuzuki's POV~

Light pierced my eyelids as the sun slowly slunk into the room. I let out a low groan and slowly sat up. I glanced over at my twin's bed only to find it empty. Before I even had time to guess where my twin could be he walked back into the room.

"Good, you're up," my brother said a smile gracing his features, "I was debating on whether or not to wake you up on the way back to our room."

"Glad I could save you some trouble," I grumbled good-naturedly, or at least as good-naturedly as I could get early in the morning. I stood as I stretched. A yawn escaped my mouth as I began getting ready for the day. I absently grabbed some street clothes as my mind began drifting a bit. I knew that for the majority of the day Arashi and I would have to find something to do, so that our father could spend some time with Chisaki. Unfortunately I had no idea what we should do.

"So," my brother's voice pulled my attention away from my own thoughts, "I was thinking we could head to the Shopping District. Quite a bit of the damage has been taken care of according to the news."

"Okay… but why the Shopping District? There are plenty of other places to go," I said.

"Just curious," Arashi said, "Besides Mom said something about needing a few things the other day."

I hummed, "Well, I have to admit it would be interesting to see how much of the Shopping District really is fixed. Besides we've really got nothing better to do until this afternoon."

With an actual plan I quickly returned to getting ready while Arashi went to talk with our mother; he wanted a list of things she needed. Once I was satisfied about being presentable I headed downstairs. A glance in the kitchen revealed our mother writing something down on a small piece of paper. Arashi was waiting for her to finish. Our father was talking with Chisaki, while Haruto was nowhere to be seen; probably still asleep. I let out a low greeting getting quiet acknowledgements from my family in return. I'd only just managed to grab a little something for breakfast before Arashi pulled me out of the kitchen and to the front door.

"We'll be back around noon," my brother sent towards the kitchen. I let out a sound of agreement as I ate; slipping on my shoes as I did. Once both Arashi and I had our shoes on we headed out the door, and into town.

"So," I began brushing my hands together to get rid of the crumbs that covered them, "what's our game plan?"

Arashi glanced down at the list our mother had provided him, "We should probably save getting the food for last, and thankfully she doesn't want too much. She does want a few paper and cleaning products."

"So, should we split up?" I asked, "It would be quicker that way."

My brother nodded, "Sounds good. So I'll get the cleaning products if you'll get the paper."

"Alright, it's a deal," I said with a smile, "So, what do I need to get?"

In response my twin tore a part of the paper off and handed it to me. On it was written the items that our mom needed. I tucked the paper in my pocket and headed off to a store I knew sold most of what was on the list.

~Arashi's POV~

I watched as my sister drifted away from me before heading off to look for the cleaning supplies my mother had asked for. Yuzuki had told me that there was a store right around where I was that sold quite a few different cleaning products. It took a little while, but I was able to locate the store. The smell of cleaning solutions was slightly strong, but most of what I needed was pretty close together which saved me a lot of time. There we only two items I wasn't able to find but the staff were very helpful, and soon I was leaving the store with my purchases.

Once outside I took a deep breath; grateful to be out of the store. I began walking in the direction Yuzuki had gone off in glancing at the shopping list as I went. I had just finished mentally checking off the items I'd bought when I bumped into someone. Startled I stepped back and opened my mouth to apologize, but I was beat to the punch by the person in front of me.

"Sorry about that," the blond said smiling, "I wasn't paying attention."

"Ah, its fine I'm at fault too Dino-san," I said giving him a reassuring look, and was relieved myself to see Romario with him, "Though, if you don't mind my asking, what brings you to the Shopping District?"

"Well, I'm supposed to be tutoring Hibari Kyoya but he wasn't at the school," Dino began explaining, "I was told that he'd probably be around here at this time of the day."

That information had me pausing, _'So, if Dino-san's training Hibari-san then Hibari-san is probably one of the Guardians that were chosen. And if that's the case then Yuzuki's theory about him being the Cloud Guardian is probably true. She won't be too happy if that's the case. Ah… didn't Dino-san say…'_

"Ano… did you say that Hibari-san is probably around here somewhere?" I asked. Dino sent me a curious look, but nodded all the same.

"That's what several of his subordinates said anyways. Why? Is something wrong?" Dino's expression grew worried when he saw my face. A bad feeling was slowly creeping over me.

"There could be," I said truthfully, "I think I might have an idea about where Hibari-san is. It's only an idea mind you, so I could be wrong."

"Well, it's better than nothing," Dino said, "So, where do we go?"

"This way," I answered taking the lead, _'I hope for your sake I'm wrong Yuzuki, but if not I then just try to hold on until we get to you.'_

~With Yuzuki; Yuzuki's POV~

It had taken very little time for me to get all the items on the partial list my brother had given me. Which was quite a relief; I'd had a scare when I couldn't find half the items in the store, but fortunately they'd only been moved around slightly. As I stepped out of the store I slipped the list back in my pocket and adjusted my grip on the bags I carried. I turned to head back towards where I'd last seen my twin, but found the way more or less blocked by a group of rough looking boys.

 _'They just look as though they want to cause some trouble. I'd rather not get involved in anything today if I can help it, but that's the quickest way back to Arashi. Maybe, if I just ignore them I can…'_

My hopes were dashed when a voice broke through my thoughts, "Hey, you!"

I mentally cursed myself when I froze. My totally normal reaction had allowed the group to surround me loosely.

"You must think yourself pretty high-and-mighty to just walk past us like we weren't even there," the guy said holding my gaze as he spoke, "That's awful disrespectful of you."

"Well, I apologize for that but I'm in a bit of a hurry," I said through gritted teeth; keeping my frustration successfully under control, "Now if you'll please excuse me."

I tried to maneuver past the obvious ring-leader, but my arm was grabbed, "I didn't say you could go. Normally, I'd forgive someone for slighting me and let them off with a warning. Unfortunately, I'm in a bit of a bad mood so I'm afraid that won't be possible this time."

At those words his little group tightened there circle. My eyes narrowed, and I felt my annoyance spike. These guys were just so annoying. They might have had numbers, but it was clear that they weren't all that strong. Still, I didn't want to fight them; it'd just be a waste of time and effort. I tried to pull free, but the boy's grip only tightened. I could feel a low growl reverberating in my chest.

"Look I really don't want to fight right now," I tried to reason my way out, "So, if you could just let me go then none of us will do something we'll regret."

"That's cute; you trying to get out of the mess you're in," the leader said, "I'd like to let you be on your way, I really would. But that just wouldn't look good in front of the boys here."

I felt like bashing my head into a wall or something. This guy was a complete annoyance, and really cliché as well. This entire thing felt like something out of a shonen anime, and I wasn't sure that I wanted to be the protagonist. That thought was only solidified when a familiar person walked around the corner.

 _'Great, just great. First this group who've set a record of getting on my last nerve, and now he has to show up! Does the universe hate me or something?!'_ my mental tirade had prevented me from realizing that the group had once again closed ranks around me. I was dimly aware that Hibari was watching the event unfold; particularly I could feel his gaze burning into me. Unfortunately, it was very clear that this group of annoyances wasn't going to let me go without some sort of confrontation. I sighed as I came to the realization that this was just not my day.

I jerked my arm out of the leader's grasp, and sent him a cold look. He paused for just a moment before he swung his fist at me. I easily blocked it and side-stepped around him before kicking him square in the center of his back. I flowed through the wall of his followers, who seemed rather shocked at my display, and out into the open street. Once I was clear of the delinquents I tossed my bags haphazardly to the side before settling into my ready stance. I didn't have to wait long for them to make a move. One of the outliers leapt at me with a yell. I nearly rolled my eyes, but caught myself and moved to the side. He stumbled as he landed.

Taking advantage of his unbalanced footing I gave him a nudge causing him to tumble forward onto his face. I would have laughed at the absurdity of it all, but I was forced to focus on what was happening currently. Two of the group thought to tag-team me; one on the left the other on the right. The both brought their fists forward at the same time so I ducked. I heard the blow above me and smirked a little as the two reeled back after hitting the other in the face. I swiftly jumped up and ran to meet the next challenger. As I got closer I dropped down and swiped the guy's feet out from under him. Before I could get up I was forced to roll out of the way as one of my other assailants tried to bring his foot down on me.

I lost track of time, though it was probably only a few minutes before the fighting was over. The hoodlums had no training at all, which made fighting them both easy and boring. The entire group was down looking at me with a mixture of emotions. Before any of them could say or do anything their eyes filled with fear. I knew it wasn't directed at me, so that left… Hibari. That realization had chills running up my spine.

"Herbivores you're crowding," the prefect's voice was low; dangerously low. With terrified screams the delinquents pulled themselves to their feet and fled. I was frozen in place. I knew the dark haired male was behind me, but I didn't dare turn around. Or at least that was my plan until I was forced to dodge a tonfa.

"Hey, watch it!" I shouted angrily.

"Herbivore, fight me," Hibari lifted his weapons up.

I let out a groan, "Can we not? I just finished a fight, and I'm busy."

Hibari just lunged at me forcing me to dodge. I was really fed up with fighting today. I had wanted to conserve as much energy as possible so I could do better later today when my dad trained Arashi and me. I could feel my frustration bubbling up, and I was less than pleased with how today was going. As my new opponent drew closer I side-stepped. Hibari must have expected that because he instantly spun around to face me. I ducked down as a tonfa made to take my head off, and bent over backwards to avoid the other. From the awkward position I was in I lashed out at Hibari's feet causing him to leap back to avoid being brought down.

I grit my teeth at the missed opportunity, but it allowed me to get back up and into a ready stance. I was only just settled when my opponent charged at me and began pelting me with a flurry of attacks. It was all I could do to dodge. As I continued to weave back-and-forth a thought that our battle felt choreographed crossed my mind, but it was gone instantly as I focused back on dodging Hibari's strikes. Suddenly I stumbled; my foot hit the curb behind me. My opponent took the opportunity to raise his tonfa to strike, but as he swung his blow was suddenly stopped. I blinked confused as to what had happened. I looked at Hibari's wrist and saw something black wound around it. I followed it to where it originated and was grateful to see Dino at the other end.

Hibari followed my gaze and though he was definitely upset about our battle being stopped, he also looked rather eager about Dino's presence. I started when a hand was placed on my shoulder and glanced over to the side. My brother was there sending me a relieved look.

"You're not hurt are you?" Arashi asked.

I shook my head, "No, I'm just fine, though I'm sure things would've been quite different if Dino-san hadn't shown up. Speaking of why is Dino-san still here?"

"Well, he's apparently training Hibari-san," my brother said, "Turns out your theory of him being the Cloud Guardian was right, or at least it seems rather likely. Why else would Dino-san be training Hibari-san?"

I tried to come up with some reason, but there was nothing I could say. Dino wouldn't have any reason to train Hibari if the latter wasn't supposed to be Tsuna's Cloud Guardian. And even though I wasn't too happy about it I'd been expecting it.

"There really isn't a reason for Dino-san to do something like that," I said, "After all Hibari really fits the description Reborn gave us a while back. And really I was expecting this."

My brother laughed, "Yeah, you really called it. Anyways I know you're not pleased with this turn of events, but maybe things won't be so bad. After all Hibari-san's rather strong, so that should help us a little when that loud guy come back."

"Maybe… but that's only if Hibari actually cooperates with us," I said a small grimace on my face, "And that's not all that likely. Plus I think Hibari just wants to fight Dino-san for the sake of fighting," I gestured across the street where Dino was busy dodging the blows Hibari threw at him. A worry flew over me for a minute before I spotted Romario off to the side.

"You're probably right, but Dino-san should be able to hold his own if Romario is here," Arashi said, "Since Dino-san seems to have everything under control now, why don't we finish this shopping trip so we can get home by noon?"

"Right, I'll just get the bags then," I said moving to grab the plastic bags. Once they were in hand Arashi and I began making our way to the next store.

~A Bit Later, Arashi's POV~

"Don't worry about it too much," I said for what seemed like the thousandth time as my sister lamented not thanking Dino for helping her out earlier.

"But I just feel guilty about leaving him to deal with Hibari," Yuzuki said.

"Think of it this way nee-san. If you had thanked Dino-san it might have distracted him and that would have allowed Hibari to land a hit in all likelihood," I really wasn't sure if that would have happened, but it really did seem like the most likely outcome.

"I suppose… you're right Arashi," my twin said slowly, "I just can't help feeling guilty though."

I sighed, "Well, Dino-san's probably gonna be here for a while if he's training Hibari-san. So, the next time you see him you can thank him then."

"I guess that's true," my sister said, "It'll feel a little weird, but that'll be the best I can do," a contemplative look crossed my sister's features, "Hey, Arashi?"

"Yeah," I returned sending Yuzuki a curious look.

"Since I was right about Hibari being the Cloud Guardian do you think I might be right about Mukuro?" Yuzuki's question caught me a bit off guard. I could see that my sister was very concerned about this possibility.

"Well, it wouldn't surprise me really, but remember he is in that Mafia Prison," I replied; holding up a hand when my twin opened her mouth, "I know that he broke out before, but remember what I said; security is probably tighter and a lot more extensive than what they had before."

"Yeah, you're right," Yuzuki said, "Sorry I guess my nerves are just getting the better of me."

Even as my twin said that I could tell that there was more to her worry over Mukuro than just him breaking out of prison again. Whatever it was it clearly upset Yuzuki, but I wasn't going to pry… not now at least. Besides I was sure that if things got really bad that my sister would tell me what was bothering her.

"Well, enough of that talk," my voice startled my sister a bit, "We have food and other supplies to get home, and training to start."

Yuzuki smiled clearly pleased for the topic change. Thankfully, it wasn't much longer until we reached home. We made small talk until we reached the drive leading up to our house. The two of us headed inside and slipped off our shoes.

"We're home!" I called out.

"Perfect timing you two," our mother's head popped out of the kitchen, "Lunch is almost ready."

"Great, we'll just put this stuff away and be back down in a flash," Yuzuki said. I went to put the food away while Yuzuki took care of the cleaning products. Once we finished we headed into the dining room where our mother had set out the lunch she had prepared. Not long after Haruto, Chisaki and our father entered the room and sat down with us. We all made small talk as we ate, though it was a little difficult for Yuzuki and I to concentrate on what was being said; it was so close to when we'd be able to start training.

~After Lunch; Yuzuki POV~

Once lunch was over Arashi and I helped our mother clear the table, while Chisaki started washing them. After that was taken care of my twin and I headed into the living room where our father was waiting. He glanced up as we came in, but said nothing for a moment.

"Dad…" Arashi trailed off as our father stood.

"I suppose you're ready then," our father said looking between the two of us, "Both of you."

I nodded, "Yeah, we're ready but what about you? Would you rather spend more time with Chisaki?"

"I'm fine Yuzuki, though I will admit I would like to see Chisaki a bit more. However, I made the two of you a promise and I'm not about to break it. Besides Arashi told me that this training was of the utmost importance to you two, and your friends," our father said a serious look in his eyes, "And if you really only have ten days then we don't have time to lose."

I shared a look with my brother. It was true we only had ten… well, nine days now, maybe not even that, to get better. As bad as it felt to tear our father away from our sister we couldn't afford to wait any longer.

"That's true, though I wish we didn't have to do it at Chisaki's expense," Arashi said. I nodded in agreement.

"I think that's something we all wish Arashi, but honestly I think Chisaki really prefers to spend time with your mother when she comes home," our father said grinning slightly, "After all your old man's not much help when it comes to picking out clothes."

"I'm sure there are others that are worse at picking out clothes than you Dad," I said a smirk forming on my face, "Whether they're in Japan or not is the question."

"Oh, a smart aleck are we?" our father grumbled good-naturedly, "Well, I suppose even smart alecks need training. So then, let's get to it," with that our father led us out of the house and towards wherever he'd decided to train us. Anticipation swelled within me, and a glance at my twin showed that he was just as excited as I was. I tried to figure out where our father was leading us but it was impossible to tell. Of course no matter where he ended up taking us I knew that it would force us to go beyond our limits.

Along the way we spotted Tsuna. The poor boy looked half-dead from whatever he'd been doing with Reborn. I told my father that I'd be right back before I headed over to the brunette.

"Hey, how's training been going for you?" I asked once I was in earshot of my friend. He jumped a little but then relaxed once he realized it was me.

"Ah, that bad huh," I sent my friend a sympathetic look, "Arashi and I are heading out now with our dad; he'll be working us pretty hard ourselves, so we probably won't be able to talk for a while."

"I see," Tsuna said, "Was there something you needed?"

"Well, not particularly," I replied, "Though I wanted to let you know that Ben and Jenna are gone. Hiromi called me and told me they left after that incident in the Shopping District. Apparently a relative of theirs…" I trailed off when I saw Tsuna's expression, "Is something wrong?"

"Ano… you see," Tsuna started, "they left with that long-haired guy. I think they're a part of that group."

My blood turned to ice, "Are you sure? Did they really go with that guy willingly?"

Tsuna nodded, "Yeah, they knew his name and they recognized Dino-san as well."

As the gravity of Tsuna's words hit me several emotions rolled over me. First there was anger, though I didn't know why or who this anger was directed at. Then came fear; if they were really a part of this group that the long-haired guy was a part of then they were probably very strong, and they'd likely be coming back with him. And then there was anxiety because if and when they returned we'd have to fight them, and I wasn't sure if I'd be able to do that.

Sure I wasn't as close to Ben and his sister, but they'd still been friends for the time they'd been here. However, I decided that at this moment worrying about the twins wasn't a big concern. For now focusing on training was the most important thing for me and everyone else to do.

"Thanks for letting me know Tsuna," I said turning to head back to my father and twin, "I'll see you later once Arashi and I get a break from training."

"Ah, see you," Tsuna called out after me as I headed back over to my father and Arashi. I knew that Arashi could tell that something was up so I gave him a look that said I'd tell him what Tsuna had told me.

~Somewhere in Italy; Ben's POV~

It had taken us about a day and a half to return to the base, and as the building rose up in front of the three of us I'd never been happier to see it. This place was not for the faint of heart, but it was home. Grinning I sauntered up the steps followed closely by my companion and Squalo. I pulled open the door once I reached the top of the stairs. No one greeted the three of us as we entered the building. I was slightly disappointed, but I figured the others were probably in the meeting room.

"So… you must have really missed this place," my companion spoke from the side as we followed Squalo down the hall. She was smiling.

"As much as I'd like to deny your claim Jen, I can't… this time," I said. She shook her head, but the smile never left her face.

"It'll be nice to see every one again," Jenna said, "I missed them all."

"Hmm… well, I guess I missed them all too," I said pausing slightly, "Even the resident basket case of a royal."

Jenna giggled. Truth be told the resident blue-blood and I never saw eye to eye on pretty much anything. Not only that but he seemed a little too interested in my sister, and that did not sit well with me one bit. Just thinking about the reasons why I disliked the prince caused my mood to drop significantly.

"You know I think I'll retract that last statement," I muttered.

My twin rolled her eyes, "Oh come on, Bel's not that bad."

I sent her an unimpressed look, "See, you say that but that doesn't mean I have to agree with you. He drives me crazy; I don't know what you seen in him."

"I don't see anything different than you do," Jenna sent back, "You just choose to butt heads with him at every given opportunity."

I said nothing. My sister wasn't wrong, but it's not like Belphegor made any attempts to get on my good side… leastways not any good ones. As it the prince and I were closely matched during the spars we had, and when we were paired on missions (thankfully not very often) we worked rather well together. This is why none of the others could understand why we didn't get along outside of those moments. I shook those thoughts away when Squalo stopped outside of the meeting room door. Seeing as how the swordsman looked like he was about to slam the door open I stepped in, and kicked the poor wooden barrier.

"We're back!" my voice carried through the room. I gauged everyone's reactions. Lussuria looked happy to see us. Mammon didn't seem to care, though I knew if I'd damaged anything the child would have my head… or at least would force me to pay for repairs. I could feel the annoyed look of Squalo boring into me from behind, and across the room Levi was giving me a similar glare though it was far less intimidating than Squalo's. My sister heaved a sigh, but that was all I got from her (she'd long since stopped from trying to interfere in my death wish decision making). Bel's trademark laugh bounced off the walls. And finally our boss; he sent me the most unimpressed look I'd ever received from him. I mentally congratulated myself on setting a new record without having a wine glass thrown at me.

"Welcome home you three," Lussuria called out, "My have you and Jenna grown since you've been gone Benjamin?"

"Don't think so Luss," Jenna replied.

"Ushishi~ glad to have you back princess, but did you really have to bring the commoner with you?" I glared at the blond who had spoken, before a smirk crawled onto my face.

"Now Bel, you should talk about Squalo-taicho like that," I said, "After all he has seniority on you."

"Oh, is that the best you've got peasant?" Bel shot back.

"Not by a long shot basket-case blueblood," I growled, "If you'd like to see my best I have no problem showing you right now."

Lussuria clapped his hands breaking the mounting tension easily, "Alright, now children calm down. You can play later after this meeting's over."

I grumbled incoherent words, but obeyed our Sun. He acted like a mom most of the time, but he could be rather scary given the chance. There wasn't much that this meeting required. Squalo simply explained how he'd obtained the rings, seen the Japanese candidate, and Jenna and my presence back here. Once that had all been taken care of Squalo gave our boss the box with the rings and we were all dismissed. As Jenna and I left I let out a mental groan as Bel followed us. There were only two reasons for him to do this. The first was that he was going to fight me; after all the meeting was over and we wouldn't have to worry about Lussuria getting mad at us for doing so. The other was that he was going to make a play for my sister.

"Ushishi~ hey princess ditch the peasant and come spend time with the prince," Bel said; apparently it was the latter.

"Oh, but didn't you have a prior engagement with this peasant your unstable royalness?" I asked cockily.

Bel's face twisted into a grin, "It appears you haven't yet learned your place. You're such a troublesome commoner. Looks like the prince will have to teach you some manners again."

I felt a feral grin spread onto my face. Jenna just sighed, and bid the two of us farewell.

"Oh, and your highness…" I sent the blond my deadliest glare, "stay away from my sister."

"Ushishi~ make me peasant," Belphegor challenged.

"Gladly," I snarled. With that the two of us headed off to one of the training rooms to settle our differences… well more or less.

* * *

 **Me: Alright… I'm not that happy with this chapter. However, it's still better than I thought it was going to be. And I apologize once more for taking forever to update. I'll admit that I might be getting a little bored, or something of the sort with Katekyo Hitman Reborn. However, that doesn't mean that I'll be abandoning this story; I intend to finish this fanfiction no matter what. All I ask is that you'll all do you best to be patient with me because I'm sure that it will take me some time to update after this.**

 **Yuzuki: As long as you do your best and try for quality work I think you'll be fine.**

 **Me: Thanks Yuzuki. So, what did you all think of Ben and Jenna being part of the Varia? I'm sure most of you probably guessed that they were a part of it from the previous chapters.**

 **Arashi: Also guesses for quite a few things are still being accepted. Oh, and Cloud has a poll up on her profile to see which of her stories you'd like her to work on after she finishes this one, so if you get a chance check it out.**

 **Me: Thanks Arashi. Okay, so… who should say the disclaimer this time? Hmm… how about-**

 **Bel: Ushishi~ the prince will show all you peasants how it's done.**

 **Me: Eh?! You're going to say it Bel?**

 **Bel: Of course.**

 **Me: Well, if you're sure.**

 **Bel: Ushishi~ watch and learn. CloudSkylark18 doesn't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. She does own her OCs and any plot when it involves them.**

 **Me: Thanks Bel. With that being said feel free to leave a review, and I'll see you all next time.**


	31. A Strange Trip

**Me: So, before I get into this chapter I just want to say that it's going to be a little interesting. I'll be trying something out, and if you guys like it please let me know in the review box. Anyways I also apologize for the long wait, and since I'm already saying this much I might as well take care of the disclaimer while I'm at it. I don't own KHR; that right belongs to Akira Amano. I can only claim my OCs and the basic plot when it comes to them. With that being said here's Chapter Twenty-Nine.**

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Nine: A Strange Trip

~Yuzuki's POV~

I dodged as my brother lashed out at me, and was forced to keep doing so as he continued to come after me. I grit my teeth and decided to try a double fake out. I spun to the left and then to the right before spinning back to the left once more. The ploy worked, and I was able to catch Arashi off balance knocking him off his feet in the process. I didn't waste any time before I pinned my twin. Arashi struggled for a moment before he tapped out.

"I think we're done for the day," our father said. I sent a look to my brother. We hadn't been training for very long in fact the sun had just barely come up.

"But… it's only just past dawn," I said.

Arashi nodded in agreement, "Yuzuki's right, we can still keep going."

"Don't you two have a school assignment to work on? Besides this is Chisaki's last day here so, I'm going to spend the day with her and your mother," our father said.

"I forgot about nee-san having to head back to college," I said, "But Arashi and I already finished the homework assignment we had."

"Well, since we won't be training anymore today why don't we just relax Yuzuki-nee?" my brother asked.

"Arashi makes a valid point Yuzuki. You can't train all the time, otherwise you'll run out of steam and won't be any good to anyone," out father said. I nodded.

"You're right otou-san," I said.

Our father smiled, "Then let's go home for today."

With that we began heading home, which luckily wasn't very far away from the training ground that our father had chosen. As we walked I glanced over at my twin. He looked better than he had in a good long while, albeit tired; his stamina still wasn't what it used to be before he got sick.

"So, what are you going to do today nii-san?" I asked Arashi as we walked. He glanced over at me before replying.

"I think I'll take a nap," my twin said, "I forgot how tiring training could be. Plus I'm still lacking stamina. What about you?"

"Well, I'm not really that tired," I answered, "So, I think I'll head over to Tsuna's today or something."

"I guess I'll see you later then," my twin said just as we came to the walkway of our house. I nodded and headed off towards my brunet friend's place. He must have been out somewhere when I got there because no one answered the door when I knocked. I decided to leave and just walk around town when Lambo ran out of the house crying. I was about to ask him what was wrong when the five year old tripped and the ten-year bazooka flew at me.

My eye went wide and I tried to dodge but it was too late. I loud boom sounded around me; deafeningly loud. At the same time my eyes were obscured by pink smoke, and there was a weird sensation that while similar to falling wasn't quite the same. Then in the next instance everything stopped. The pink smoke was present around me still so I waved my hands to clear it away; coughing a little as I did. When I was finally able to see again I did a double take. I was no longer outside of Tsuna's house; instead I was in some sort of large building. I spun slowly in place taking in my surroundings. It was clear that whoever lived here was rich. There was too much around me to take in all at once, but one thing was clear to me; I had to get out of here before the person who lived in this place returned and found me.

 _'After all I doubt that they'd believe me if I told them I didn't mean to end up here,'_ thoughts like that swirled around my head as I made my way down the hall. This place felt like a maze as every turn seemed the same as the last. Finally the monotony and silence was broken. I rounded a corner to find an open door; curiosity urged me to move closer and take a look. Cautiously I peeked into the room before instantly pulling away from the opening. There were a couple men in the other room. From my quick glimpse I'd seen that one had brown hair and the other black. Once my fear had subsided I realized that the two were talking.

"Hmm… she's late," one voice said, "But she did get home pretty late from that last mission."

"While that is true Boss, has she ever been this late before?" the other asked. Questions flooded my mind even as I figured that I wasn't supposed to hear this conversation. There was no real reason not to, but something about the one being addressed as Boss had me on edge.

 _'I shouldn't stick around. If they catch me here then I really won't be able to talk my way out of this,'_ with that I made my way past the door; heart pounding with each step. Thankfully neither man turned in my direction. Letting out a silent, shaky breath I continued on my way. But as I continued walking my luck seemed to have finally run out as footsteps sounded out from in front of me. While they were muffled by the carpet it was clear that they were getting closer to me. Panic flooded my entire being as my eyes darted around trying to find a way to escape. Going back the way I came was out of the question; the men might see me if I tried to head back that way. Opening doors was out of the question; I had no way to know if these doors were noisy or not, nor did I have a clue as to what lay behind them.

Unfortunately, my decision was made for me as a person rounded the corner. He didn't seem to notice me at first so I took that opportunity to try inching past him even as I observed him. He seemed irritated, but I couldn't discern the cause. He was dressed in formal attire; purple dress shirt and a black tie under a black suit. His dark hair was short and slightly messy, but it did detract from his immaculate look. His steel gray eyes were focused on the path in front of him, but that didn't last. I stiffened as his eyes locked with mine, and I wondered if I had made too sudden a move. I wanted to run desperately, but I was pinned in place by the stranger's gaze.

"Herbivore, how did you get in here?" the man's voice startled me. It took a moment for what he said to register, but when it did I swallowed thickly.

"H-Hibari," my voice sounded quiet and soft to my ears, but even so the one standing before me heard it. A feral look came to his eyes as a smirk followed. He pulled out his weapons of choice; the light glinted off the tonfas as he held them in a ready position. I felt afraid to move, but I forced my hands up so that I could defend myself if need be. The older Hibari, if it really was him but how could it not be, glanced briefly at the ring on my finger.

"Where did you get that?" he asked.

I glanced at the ring then turned my eyes back to my opponent, "From a friend. Though I thought you would kno- oh sh-"

I was forced to dodge as he took a swing at me. He knocked a hole into the wall where my head had been. Any doubt of who was standing before me had been blown away by that display of strength. I knew I wouldn't be able to stand on even ground with him so; I didn't bother to stick around. My feet hit the ground hard as I pushed myself to out speed the older Hibari. Even as I ran I knew it would be a futile effort, but I couldn't afford to stop now.

 _'Since I'm running from an older version of the demon of Namimori does that mean I'm really in the future? Lambo's bazooka actually works that way?! But hasn't it been over ten minutes? Isn't the person who gets blasted only supposed to be gone for that amount of time? If so, why haven't I gone back yet?'_ those thoughts raged through my mind as my legs pushed me through the halls. The murderous intent behind me spurred me on, but Hibari was gaining on me and fast. No matter what happened this wouldn't end well, though I did wonder if I told my pursuer who I was if that would make a difference. Glancing over my shoulder dashed that thought from my mind, and he might know exactly who I was already, so I turned my eyes forward and pushed myself to continue running. All the while I wondered why this had to happen to me.

~Meanwhile In the Past~

~TYL Yuzuki's POV~

The pink smoke that had surrounded me was blown away by the breeze, which immediately had me on edge. I'd been inside the base mere moments ago, but now I was outside. I surveyed the area, and a sense of nostalgia washed over me as I took in the sight of Tsuna's house. I'd travelled back in time, back ten years ago.

 _'My younger self must have been hit by Lambo's bazooka. Well, it doesn't matter after ten minutes I'll be home and so will she,'_ I said silently to myself. I considered heading inside to see Tsuna and freak him out a little, but I decided to leave the poor boy alone. After all, if this was really ten years ago Tsuna and the others had a lot on their plate.

"Hmm… I wonder how the school is faring? Have the battles started yet, or is it too early or am I late?" I murmured to myself, "Think I'll go and see."

Having decided on my course of action I headed towards the school. Every sight that greeted me brought back fond memories, and some not so fond. There was the shopping district where I'd spent time looking at the tiger pendant necklace; I subconsciously reached up to grab the very same object from its place around my neck a fond smile spreading across my face. It was also where my friends and I had lost to the Varia's obnoxiously loud swordsmen; the event that started the whole conflict. Shaking myself from those thoughts I continued onto the school.

~A Little Later~

I glanced up at the building. Somehow, it seemed a bit… smaller than I recalled. Of course I wasn't the same person now as I was then. I glanced around, but didn't see anyone suspicious around. However, I did hear the sound of fighting coming from the roof.

 _'It's too early for any of the Ring Battles, so I must have come back before the fights. So, that's probably Dino training Kyoya. I think I'll say hello,'_ I grinned as I headed into the building. I easily navigated my way through the building, and to the stairs leading up to the roof. I paused at the door.

 _'Hmm… has it been ten minutes yet? Did something break with the Ten Year Bazooka? Wait… was this the day that_ he _... yeah it is isn't? Well, nothing to do about it now,'_ with that thought I prepared myself for any consequence that occurred as I pushed the door open. The fight stopped as the three people on the roof looked at me in confusion. Romario had subtly tensed, as had Dino. Those two hadn't changed all that much; I mentally smiled at the thought. I dodged to the side as the final person on the roof decided to remind me of his presence.

"Herbivore, it's against school rules to trespass after hours," the dark haired boy growled.

I hummed thoughtfully, "Well, you really haven't changed at all Kyoya," I grinned as the younger Cloud Guardian's eyes narrowed in annoyance. He lunged at me tonfa bearing towards my face. I ducked down reaching towards my waist and gripping the hilt of the dagger that rested there. As the next blow flew towards me I blocked with the blade in my hand; the metal clanging as the two weapons met. I raised an eyebrow at the boy before me before launching a kick at his torso. Kyoya let out a grunt as he was pushed back from the force of the blow.

"Honestly, school rules don't really apply to me; I'm an adult after all," I said keeping my eyes on the Cloud Guardian, "And speaking of you're ten years too early to fight me."

A feral look entered my opponent's eyes as he leapt at me again. I mentally sighed as I cartwheeled to the left springing up just in time to block a swing from the side. Metal clanged once again before I pushed Kyoya away. I followed up with a swift kick, which was dodged. My opponent was quick to retaliate with a strike aiming for my head. I bent backwards to avoid it; hands planted on the ground I used that momentum to send a kick at Kyoya's head. He was able to avoid the blow, but the same momentum allowed me to regain my footing. I took in my opponent; his steel gray eyes locked with mine and I could see a glimmer of respect there.

"Not bad Kyoya, not bad at all. I'm impressed," I said honestly; sheathing my dagger, "You've improved a lot in such a short time. However, that's still not enough to beat me."

With those words I launched forwards, dodging under the strikes he sent my way. I sent a quick succession of jabs at my opponent, ending with an open palm strike. Kyoya was thrown back; kicking up a cloud of dust as he desperately dug his heels in trying to slow his momentum. However, I didn't give him time to properly recover. I rushed forward dropping into a slide as I drew closer, and sweeping my opponent's legs from under him. I spun into a crouch as Kyoya fell, catching himself at the last minute. I could feel the bloodlust rolling off of him as he pushed himself to his feet and shot towards me. It was kind of predictable and I sighed. Once he was close enough I leapt from my crouched position up and over the young Cloud Guardian.

As I flew over him I lashed out with my foot, connecting with his back and making him stumble. I landed moments later and dashed at Kyoya; giving him no time to recover. I pulled my arm back once I was close enough and struck the back of my opponent's neck.

"Well, that's the only victory I'll ever have over you," I said as Kyoya was rendered unconscious, "And yet, it doesn't feel right. Maybe because you still have a lot of room to improve yet."

"So you know Kyoya then?" Dino's question reminded me that I had an audience.

I nodded, "Yeah, though he doesn't know this version of me Dino-san. I did tell him he was ten years too early to fight me, but he'd easily beat me if that weren't the case."

"Was that supposed to be a hint?" Romario asked from where he stood. I smiled.

"Very perceptive Romario-san, it is indeed a hint. But if that still doesn't help…" I lifted the tiger pendant up for the two to see, "Maybe this will help."

"You're Yuzuki from ten years in the future, aren't you," Dino said.

"Yep, indeed I am. It's really nice to see you again Dino-san, and I apologize for interrupting your training session with Kyoya. I really just intended to say hello, but I was prepared for this outcome," I said glancing at the unconscious Cloud Guardian, "He hasn't changed all that much in the future… though to be fair the others are pretty much the same too."

"So, what do you intend to do now?" the blond mafia boss asked.

I hummed, "Well, I'd say I'd be heading home now but it's been well over ten minutes. I heard from Arashi and the others that Giannini was in town one day, and messed up their weapons including the Ten Year Bazooka. So, I'm assuming that was today and that the bazooka was _upgraded_ after I was hit," I looked out over the town, "Until it gets fixed I'm pretty sure that I'll be stuck here. So, I'm gonna wander around town for a bit."

Having said that I walked over to the door, and opened it, "Oh, and I know what you and Reborn did for my brother… so thanks for that," I stepped into the school as Dino's voice trailed after me.

"It was nothing. I was happy to do it," the words followed me bringing a smile to my face.

 _'It wasn't nothing to me and my brother. We still owe you one Dino… well you and Reborn,'_ I said internally as I walked down the stairs.

~Back in the Future~

~Yuzuki's POV~

Somehow I'd managed to loose Hibari, but I didn't know for how long. My breaths were coming out in ragged gasps as my heart tried to break free from my chest. I leaned back against the wall sinking to the ground. I absently grasped the tiger pendant that hung from the necklace I wore, despite still not knowing who it had come from, the sheer familiarity of the object helped calm my nerves immensely.

 _'All I have to do now is avoid being caught. Eventually, I'll have to go home… right?'_ my thoughts froze. Could I even get home anymore? It had been way longer than ten minutes; the sun was beginning to set. I could feel tears springing to my eyes at the thought of never going home again. I brought my knees to my chest and buried my head in them. Suddenly, I heard footsteps coming my way again. I stiffened, but it was too late to move.

"Yuzuki-nee?" I glanced up at the questioning voice. It was the same one I'd heard earlier before I'd been forced to run. The man standing before me had dark hair, and wore a similar outfit to Hibari, though the purple was replaced with white. The way he'd addressed clued me in to who he was, but it was the blue-gray eyes that mirrored my own that drove the fact home.

"Arashi…" with no conscious thought his name slipped out of my mouth as I hugged the older version of my brother. He chuckled lightly as he returned the hug.

"Seems like you've had a rough day nee-san. So, this was your first experience with the Ten Year Bazooka," my twin said.

I shudder, "First and hopefully last. You're not saying that I go through this again are you?"

Arashi shrugged, "Not sure if you travel to the future again, but you do see other's get blasted… from what you've told past and present. That reminds me how long have you been here?"

"That's good news, I really don't want to deal with something like this again," I said a sigh of relief slipping out of me, "As for how long I've been here… well, it's definitely been longer than ten minutes."

"I see, so then Giannini was visiting Tsuna in the past," my brother must have seen my confused look because he was quick to elaborate, "Giannini is the Vongola's chief inventor and upgrader of weapons, though in the past he downgraded things more that he upgraded. Thankfully, he overcame that but there were times…" my brother trailed off, "Anyways, you should be fine. From what I heard from Tsuna you weren't the only one caught in a mess caused by that bazooka; Gokudera was apparently de-aged but everything was fixed by sunset."

"So… any moment now and I'll go home," I said. My twin nodded, and I allowed myself to relax. For a few moments Arashi and I sat in comfortable silence. It was just as I opened my mouth to ask him where we were that I was surrounded by the same pink smoke as before. I coughed as I waved my hand in front of my face trying to dissipate the cloud of smoke that obscured my vision once again. When I was finally able to see again I found myself standing in front of my house with a very confused twin staring back at me. Arashi opened his mouth, but I held up a hand stopping him.

"I've had a very long and strange day," I said, "So, if you could just let me have tonight I'll tell you about it in the morning."

"As long as you do then I don't have a problem with that," my twin said before leading me inside.

~The Future~

~TYL! Yuzuki's POV~

"Well, how was your trip nee-san?" I looked to the side at my brother.

"Nostalgic… mostly," I replied.

"Did you…" Arashi trailed off.

I nodded, "Yep to both. I'm gonna be hearing about it I'm sure. So, tell Tsuna I'll meet with him tomorrow… if I'm able."

"Do you regret fighting him?" Arashi asked. I shrugged.

"Not sure really, but when I figure it out you'll be the first to know," I replied walking down the hall, "Try not to worry too much though."

"With you Yuzuki, all I do it worry," Arashi said teasingly before he went to locate Tsuna. I rolled my eyes as I continued on my way. Finally, I came to the door I was looking for. I took a deep breath mentally preparing myself before sliding the door open.

"I'm back," I said, though the raven haired man in front of me gave no reaction, "Are you really that mad Kyoya? Would it help if I apologized?"

Kyoya huffed, but said nothing. A fond, but exasperated look worked its way onto my face as I walked over to the Cloud Guardian. I wrapped my arms around him; he glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. He was still irritated.

"I am sorry," I said, "But you and I both know that once your younger self started that fight there was no way I could back out. I either had to defeat him or be defeated, but it was a close thing. Maybe it didn't seem like it at the time, but if I hadn't kept you unbalanced you would've easily beaten me."

"Herbivore, if you ever do anything like that again," Kyoya growled, "I'll bite you to death."

I smiled, "You really haven't changed Kyoya, but I wouldn't want it any other way," I placed a chaste kiss on his cheek, "See you in the morning."

With that I stood and made to leave the room. I paused at the door when Kyoya stood. He strode towards me. Once he was right in front of me he pulled me close to him; one arm wrapped around my waist while his free hand ran through my hair. I wrapped my arms around his neck as another smile came to my face; moments when Kyoya initiated affectionate moments were few and far between so, I was going to savor this. The hand that had been running through my hair trailed down to my chin. I tilted my head back as Kyoya leaned down meeting my lips with his. Yes I really wouldn't want him any other way.

* * *

 **Me: Oh, my gosh… this took forever! But… finally we have some romance!**

 **Yuzuki: *blushes* Oh, my gosh we do!**

 **TYL! Yuzuki: Cute, my younger self is embarrassed. Cloud, you've outdone yourself… at least in my opinion.**

 **Me: Thanks Future Yuzuki. Once again I'd like to apologize to all of you for the long wait, and do you all think that Hibari was in character in the future? Oh, and in case you all were wondering TYL! Yuzuki calls Hibari Kyoya cause they've known each other for a while and well… if the kiss at the end didn't clue you in they're in a relationship.**

 **TYL! Yuzuki: Yep, we are… *glances over at younger self who is still blushing* and I think we might have broken my younger self. Anyways, for those of you wondering what I meant when I thanked Dino for helping me and my brother… well, think back to Arashi being in Italy with a certain doctor.**

 **Me: That's right all Dino and Reborn called in a favor to Shamal, which is why he helped Arashi. So, I think that's all that needs to be said, but if you have any questions about anything feel free to PM me. That being said see you all next time!**


End file.
